--- description: According to National Geographic, red-sided garter snakes flock to limestone caves for "mating balls." title: 75,000 Snake Meet-Up is Your Nightmare Realized image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # 75,000 Snakes Gathered in Most Terrifying Animal Meet-Up Ever by [Laura Stampler](/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 27, 2014 4:09 PM CUT by [Laura Stampler](/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 27, 2014 4:09 PM CUT When we think of animal meet-ups, the image of corgis frolicking on a beach comes to mind: > [](https://twitter.com/RyBell10/status/348932062180425728) A recent animal meet-up in Canada was the exact opposite of that. Every spring, the Narcisse Snake Dens of Manitoba, Canada hosts an event for 75,000 writhing snakes. Say hello to your waking nightmare: According to [_National Geographic_](http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/06/140626-snakes-narcisse-animals-mating-sex-animals-world/ "undefined")_,_ the red-sided garter snakes flock to limestone caves for “mating balls.” What’s that? It’s an event in which: --- > “” --- Disturbing on just about every level. We’ll stick to corgis in neckerchiefs, thanks. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/2933842/75000-snakes-gathered-in-most-terrifying-animal-meet-up-ever/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/2933842/75000-snakes-gathered-in-most-terrifying-animal-meet-up-ever/"},"headline":"75,000 Snakes Gathered in Most Terrifying Animal Meet-Up Ever","datePublished":"2014-06-27T16:09:46.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:11:13.075Z","description":"It's a mating ritual.","url":"https://time.com/2933842/75000-snakes-gathered-in-most-terrifying-animal-meet-up-ever/","keywords":["Newsfeed","animals","National Geographic","Snakes"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Laura Stampler","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/2933842/75000-snakes-gathered-in-most-terrifying-animal-meet-up-ever/","name":"75,000 Snakes Gathered in Most Terrifying Animal Meet-Up Ever"}}]}] ```