These are neat little snakes. Maybe 8 inches long full grown. They do appear to love to hide in slate. Note, in the shots on the ground, those are pine needles from a blue spruce. Also for scale, in this first shot, the round object in the upper portion of the photo at the end of the stick is an acorn.





I really liked the shape he made in this shot.

Back yard or somewhere else?

James

Front Yard:)

While cutting the lawn Sunday I had to catch and remove one like this and a small garter too. I hit one once and still feel bad:)

I never saw these guys in NJ, but they are very common here in Northern PA.