Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Living in Az for only a year I was wondering

1) Since all rattlesnakes are denned up right now when do they start to become active again...

2) Since we are in a drought right now are we going to start seeing them earlier then ussual?

If we can reasonably compare So Cal with greater AZ, then mid-March is about as early as one can expect to see action. Late April into mid- May is prime time. We may still get some relief (rain) this year...please dance, chant, whatever. My hope is that last season's record precip will at least help carry the entire food chain and next generations. When populations really fall-off I think,is after prolonged and repeated periods of drought. I'm not expecting earlier activity however.

Patrick...

Not sure what part of Az you're in, but I've been here for 11 years and live in the Phoenix area...

Due to the drought that we are in, I would expect far less activity than normal. Normally, I'll begin to see activity mid-March or early April....However, because Phoenix hasn't received even a drop of rain for something like 130 days, I'd imagine that the snakes will (in large part) continue to remain denned up....No sense in becoming active and foraging if nothing else is moving either...

Incidentally, I've experienced the greatest periods of activity on the 2 or 3 nights following a nice rain....Cruise the roads after a good rain, and you are likely to see cerastes, atrox, scutulatus, et al. out in force, as the rodents and lizards are also out for dinner or a quick drink. Dontcha just love living in a desert?

-Kris