Acorn, visited 38 Bay Area classrooms last year - but this friendly garter snake wasn't always an educator.

Acorn came to Things That Creep after being caught in a glue trap and losing most of their belly scales. While Acorn has made a recovery and now serves as a spokesnake and advocate against the harms of glue traps, many snakes, reptiles, amphibians, birds, and other creatures are not so lucky. Read on to learn more about Acorn and why it is so important to stop the use of glue traps, especially outdoors.

FAST FACTS:

• Acorn is a Terrestrial Garter snake (Thamnophis elegans),one of 5 varieties of garter snakes found in the Bay Area

• HARMLESS TO HUMANS, these snakes produce a very mild venom that is secreted from large teeth in the back of the mouth instead of fangs in the front. This venom is for catching their food.

• Garter Snakes have been observed eating Rough-Skinned and California Newts, which are highly toxic.

• Garter snakes’ primary defense mechanism is called musking, where they secrete a fluid that smells similar to rotten fish.

HAZARDS OF GLUE TRAPS: 

• Glue traps operate indiscriminately and capture many animals -  including pets - causing injury, distress, and death. They also have environmental impacts, as the glue is hard to remove and can contaminate an area.

• In addition to being largely ineffective to eliminate the insects and rodents they are aimed at, glue traps are inhumane, causing animals caught inside to die of dehydration or starvation over many days.

• Glue traps are banned in some countries and areas.

• To learn more about the dangers of glue traps, please visit https://gluesavior.com/why-are-glue-traps-bad/ or https://discoverwildcare.org/never-use-glue-traps/

­Spread the word about not using glue traps and make changes in your own home, replacing them with alternatives, such as:

• Catch and release traps for vertebrates

• Prevent unwanted encounters by making sure there is no way for pests to enter your home and no reason for them to do so.