How this Canadian Press wire story ended up in the Arizona Republic I have no idea, but garter snake mortality in Manitoba’s interlake region has dropped by 90 per cent over the past decade thanks to a dozen tunnels built under Highway 17 by Manitoba Hydro, the provincial electricity company. As a result, the local population of Red-sided Garter Snakes — famous around the world for its mass hibernation dens near Narcisse — has rebounded to its earlier levels. (Update: Picked up by The Globe and Mail, too.)