Fast Facts: The Narcisse Snake Dens and the red-sided garter snake

- Manitoba's red-sided garter snake dens are world famous for being the largest concentration of snakes in the world

- In the spring, snakes emerge from the dens and breed in the area surrounding the den sites

- The Narcisse Wildlife Management Area (WMA) contains four major wintering dens.

- In excess of 50,000 snakes congregate at the dens during the spring mating and the fall pre-denning periods

- The dens are a network of cracks and hollows extending to the earth’s surface formed by underground water that eroded and collapsed the limestone

- Adult females are larger in both length and thickness than adult males

- When females emerge from the dens, they are vigorously pursued by a number of males that entwine themselves around her forming a mating ball

- A female may give birth to as many as 40-50 young

- The average brood (a family of young animals produced at one birth) is about 20 in number

- In 2000, the Narcisse Snake Mortality Advisory Group forged a partnership with Manitoba Hydro, Centra Gas and a number of other businesses, organizations and volunteers to install a series of small tunnels under the highway and erect barrier fencing to guide migrating snakes into tunnels

- The red-sided garter snake prefers to be near ponds in areas of moderate moisture

- It can be found from the Northwest Territories south to Oklahoma, east to Ontario and west to British Columbia

- Birds are their most serious predators with many red-sided garters killed by crows, magpies, owls and hawks

Source: Wildlife Branch/ Government of Manitoba

Tune in to CTV Morning Live and CTV News at Six May 11 for more on the Narcisse Snake Dens.