Recorded along refuge's borders in southeast Minnesota. Occurs in bordering woodlands. The western form T. radix has been found in tributary areas immediately westward. Occasionally noted on the dry sand prairies. Occasional in bordering upland woods, under bark of logs, beneath stones.
Yellow collar is distinctive.
Common throughout most of refuge area. Found in open woodlands and prairies. This yellowish, brown-blotched snake is noted occasionally in upland wooded areas or in willow thickets between marshes. This shiny black serpent occurs from the southeastern borders of Minnesota south through the refuge, becoming more numerous southward. Common on dry elevated sand prairie or open meadows and bluff slopes.