Those maps include fossil records. "Most recent Indiana records of the Timber Rattlesnake are from the rugged hill country of the Shawnee Hills and Highland Rim upland regions, but even here its distribution is spotty. However, Richards (1990, he found these remains in caves where the bones didn't succumb to the elements) found skeletal remains of Timber Rattlesnakes in seven sites in Shelby, Decatur, and Jennings counties as well as at a number of other sites where the species no longer occurs." Sherman Minton, Amphibians & Reptiles of Indiana 2001. So far as driving time goes, we're talking winding roads deep into what is left of virgin forest in southern Indiana. The same applies to southern IL, Shawnee is a huge state forest. Shawnee is further south than the southern tip of IN itself. You have to trek deep into these areas for rattlesnakes. They do not occur in the Wabash flood plains and are very rare in the Ohio valley counties. I have a copy of the herps of IL. The northeastern timber range are old records, from 75 - 100 yrs ago. It's fun to debate. I wish these animals existed within their original range, but they don't in my opinion. That's from 20 years of exploring these areas myself, and communicating w/ state biologist who work with timbers in Indiana.
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2 tham radix

1 Chicago Tham s. semifasciatus

2 elaphe vulpina

1 gray tiger salamander

4 Aphonopelma hentzi

1 G rosea

1 Haplo minax

1 Brachy angustum

1 Brachy sabulosum

1 Brachy vagans

1 Cent. hentzi scorp

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