The wandering garter snake (Thamnophis elegans vagrans) is characterized by a neutral base color and a checkerboard pattern of dark spots between cream/yellow strips. One special adaptation of garter snakes is internal incubation, a process where embryos develop inside eggs that the mother carries for two to three months. While the majority of snake species lay eggs, garter snake reproduction is considered a live birth, and offspring are independent once they emerge from the egg sack. This has allowed the garter snake to maintain an impressively large range from southern New Mexico to south western Canada. Well adapted species like the garter snake may fair better but these climactic changes will be felt by all life.