Thamnophis saurita – The Ribbon Snake – is a common species of garter snake common near bodies of water in the Eastern United Ssssstates.
Sorry, but you know the rules: one visual pun per article.
Regardless of syllable tomfoolery, the Ribbon Snake is on the cuter side of the snake family, with its bright colors, dashing eyes and disarming tongue. It’s a comfort to know these critters are non-venomous and largely harmless.
These critters feed on bugs, small amphibians and fish. They don’t have any aggressive defensive behaviors and rely on camouflage
Ribbon Snakes are often found in the North Woods, just like the one pictured above, from April through October, with the excluded months acting as their hibernation period.
Although some view hibernation as relief and comfort, I see it as a tragedy.
Of course, I know the winter is too harsh, that ectotherms have to pick and choose their battles, but that is just so much time.
I bet they would love to slither in the snow. Slowly succumbing to a winter wonderland, It’s an environment they deserve to experience but really shouldn’t.
I wonder if they care about their lost time.
I wish I had more hours in the day. That can be solved without needing to sleep. However, physiology had other plans.
Now, I see how lucky I am. I don’t have to miss a whole season. It’s a gift that my body allows me to see what I see and feel what I feel.
Maybe I am ignorant of the true feelings of a ribbon snake. Maybe they take comfort in their rest. Maybe they dream euphoric snake dreams; all is peaceful when you are finally safe.
That does sound nice when I put it that way.
With this being my last week at the University of Rhode Island and my last go-around with this column, I can’t help but make a connection to Ouroboros, the myth and symbol of a snake eating its own tail.
For an ouroboros, the end and beginning are one. A phantom, a cycle, laughing in the face of your linear worldview.
It’s all a cycle, isn’t it?
It happened before to me. Just three years ago, I was a young broncin’ buc, with a Keaney Blue carnation and a sense of good luck. But now I’ll end anew, with a future much less certain than I had hoped for.
“I am a snake head eating its head from the opposite side, I palindrome I,” is how “They Might be Giants” put it. This sentiment I now feel more than ever.
This round of that enduring cycle has ended. My time writing this column has ended, and now I have to bask in the gratefulness of being here.
Huh.
That felt more comforting to write than possibly any line I have ever written in my life. Sometimes a symbol will do that for you.
There is something so innate about Ouroboros; it’s in our lives, bodies, ecosystems and the solar system! Cycles come and go, just like stories.
I know I’ll tell this story over and over again, even as I roll around new circles in my life, one more palindrome in my dictionary.
Thank you all for reading this column. The support I have gotten from my peers means everything to me. I hope one day, maybe in five months or maybe five years will take up the mantle. I would love for another person to have their own take on this column.
Maybe this column is a cycle, bursting and bubbling after my time.
There are still so many stories to be told, so many critters to appreciate and document. Our campus, and no matter where you find yourself, has natural beauty waiting for you. Local ecosystems are full of biodiversity if you look closely enough.
If you find this beautiful nope rope in the wild, let it slither and teach you something about yourself that you need to hear.
