If you’re searching for “garden snake eggs,” there’s an important surprise: the common garter snake, the species most people call a garden snake, doesn’t lay eggs at all. Garter snakes give live birth. So if you’ve found eggs buried in your garden soil, compost, or mulch, they came from a different animal. Here’s how to figure out what you’re actually looking at and what to do about it.
Why Garter Snakes Don’t Lay Eggs
Garter snakes are ovoviviparous. Their eggs develop and hatch inside the mother’s body, and she delivers live baby snakes rather than depositing eggs in a nest. The soft-shelled eggs are contained within her during a gestation period of two to three months, then reabsorbed after the babies hatch internally. A single litter usually ranges from 10 to 40 young, though exceptionally large females can produce up to 80 offspring.
This means you will never find garter snake eggs in your yard. If you spot a cluster of small, soft-shelled eggs in your garden, something else laid them.
What Actually Lays Eggs in Gardens
Many other snake species do lay eggs, and gardens make attractive nesting sites. Rat snakes, king snakes, racers, and ring-necked snakes are all common egg-laying species found in North American yards. In some regions, venomous species like copperheads or brown snakes also lay eggs outdoors. Beyond snakes, turtles and lizards frequently bury eggs in garden soil too.
Snakes choose nesting spots that hold warmth and moisture. Compost bins are a favorite, along with rotting logs, piles of mulch, leaf litter, and soft soil beneath brush piles. The decomposing organic material generates gentle heat that helps incubate the eggs naturally.
How to Identify Snake Eggs
Snake eggs have a distinctive look and feel that separates them from bird, turtle, or lizard eggs. Here’s what to check:
- Texture: Snake eggs feel rubbery and leathery, not hard like a chicken egg. They have a little give when lightly pressed.
- Shape: They’re more elongated than bird eggs, with a somewhat tubelike or oblong appearance rather than a classic oval.
- Color: Always clean white, with no spots or speckles. Freshly laid eggs can look slightly transparent. If an egg has turned yellow or brown, the embryo inside may no longer be viable.
- Size: Most snake eggs average about one inch in length, though this varies by species. Larger snakes produce larger eggs.
Snake Eggs vs. Lizard Eggs
Lizard eggs look similar but tend to be smaller than an inch. They’re also usually soft and leathery, but some lizard species (especially those from dry climates) produce harder-shelled eggs. Lizard eggs sometimes have speckles or a brownish or light green tint, while snake eggs are consistently plain white. If the eggs you found are under an inch, speckled, or slightly hard, they’re more likely from a lizard.
Snake Eggs vs. Turtle Eggs
Turtle eggs are typically rounder, closer to a ping-pong ball shape, and often slightly larger. They feel firmer than snake eggs, though some soft-shelled turtle eggs can cause confusion. Turtles tend to bury eggs in open, sun-exposed soil rather than under compost or mulch.
When Eggs Appear and How Long They Take to Hatch
Most egg-laying snakes in temperate climates deposit their eggs in late spring or early summer, taking advantage of warm soil temperatures. The average incubation period is about 57 days, though it ranges from 40 to 70 days depending on species and temperature. This timing means most snake eggs hatch between August and September, when late-summer warmth pushes the developing embryos to full term.
Eggs found earlier in the season are more likely to still contain developing embryos. Eggs discovered in late summer may be close to hatching or already empty. Hatched snake eggs look deflated and collapsed, sometimes with a visible slit where the baby emerged.
What to Do If You Find Eggs in Your Garden
The best course of action depends on whether you can leave them undisturbed.
If the eggs are still in the ground and you don’t need to move them, simply cover them back up. Orientation matters for reptile eggs. Unlike bird eggs, which get turned regularly by the parent, snake and lizard embryos attach to one side of the shell internally. Rotating the egg can be fatal to the developing animal.
If you’ve already dug the eggs up or can’t leave them where they are, place them in a container in the same orientation you found them. Keep them warm but not hot, and lay a damp (not soaking) cloth or paper towel in the container to maintain humidity. Even cracked eggs can sometimes survive if they reach a wildlife rehabilitator quickly. Contact a local wildlife care group, and if you’re unsure what species laid them, take a photo next to a ruler and post it on a reptile identification group online.
Keep in mind that you generally can’t tell from the egg alone whether the snake inside is a harmless species or a venomous one. Egg-laying venomous snakes exist in many parts of North America, so handle any eggs you find with care, using gloves or a tool rather than bare hands.
Garter Snake Babies in Your Yard
Even though garter snakes skip the egg stage, you may still encounter their young in your garden. Garter snakes give birth in late summer, and the babies are tiny, usually just six to eight inches long. They’re fully independent from birth, with no parental care, and immediately begin hunting small insects, worms, and slugs. If you see a cluster of very small striped snakes in your yard in August or September, a female likely gave birth nearby.
These baby garter snakes are harmless and beneficial garden residents. They eat slugs, leeches, and other pests, making them one of the more helpful animals you can have around your plants.