Field guides and amateur lepidopterists were on the lookout for butterflies Saturday morning, but the first catch of the day was a 3-foot garter snake.Jeff Seim at the Kansas Wetlands Education Center grabbed the snake when it came within a few feet of the building; it responded with typical snake defense mechanisms, pooping and secreting musk until it was released.There are three varieties of garter snakes native to the Cheyenne Bottom area, Seim said. This one was a common garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis), often called a red-sided garter snake. The snakes have enjoyed the abundance of frogs this year, due to the wet spring and summer.Once the snake sped away, visitors turned to the quest of the day: The North American Butterfly Association’s 41st annual butterfly count.Pam Martin, a KWEC educator with the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism, said the increase in rainfall after several years of drought might also affect this year’s butterfly count.“We’ve seen some unusual species this year,” Martin said.