[This story is from our archives. Like the Science Times page on Facebook. | Sign up for the Science Times newsletter.]

_____

A slithering carpet of 75,000 snakes in a space the size of a living room. It’s hard to imagine wanting to get close to such a scene, but every year it happens, and visitors from around the world attend the unusual reptilian display in the remote hamlet of Narcisse in Manitoba, Canada.

The peak of the “emergence,” as the province’s website calls the unusual event, is expected this weekend. Over the past week and a half, guests to the wildlife area have had hints of what’s to come. Thousands of red-sided garter snakes have gradually awakened from an eight-month nap in their subterranean limestone lairs. They tumble about the craggy landscape in tangled knots with a singular focus: reproduction.