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A little off topic ...

How likely are atrox (or other rattlers) to return to a favored spot if relocated? How far should they be moved (if necessary due to safety concerns)?

I just had to relocate a rattlesnake from near the front steps of a cabin that I built and sold in south Brewster county. If it was just me, I would have let him stay. However, the new owners rent the place to the public and wanted it removed.

He was about 30" and had just finished off a small cottontail (probably weighed almost as much as the snake). He was spotted in the same area a few nights ago.

I relocated him to a similar habitat about one mile away. I probably would have taken him farther away if he was larger (more established territory??).

Also, any effective, eco-friendly tips on discouraging rattlesnakes from inhabiting a given area (say within 100' of a house). Limiting shelter and food sources has already been done as much as reasonable.

You are asking a very good question. Relocated rattlesnakes can and will return in many cases if able to do so. Please check the following references for further information:

Johnson, R. R., B. D. Porchuk and J. V. Gedir. 2000. In review. Movement and survival in translocated eastern massasauga rattlesnakes (Sistrurus catenatus catenatus). Herpetol. Rev.

Hardy, ST., D. L., and H. W. Greene. 1999. Borderland blacktails: radiotelemetry, natural history, and living with venomous snakes. In: Toward Integrated Research, Land Management, and Ecosystem Protection in the Malpai Borderlands: Conference Summary, January 6-8, 1999, Douglas, Arizona. USDA Forest Service Conference Proceedings RMRS-P-10:117-121.

Hare, T. A., and J .T. McNally. 1997. Evaluation of a rattlesnake relocation program in the Tucson, Arizona, area. Sonoran Herpetol. 10:26-31.

Nowak, E. M. 1998. Implications of nuisance rattlesnake relocation at Montezurna Castle National Monument. Sonoran Herpetol. 11:2-5.

Reinert, H. K, and R. R. Rupert, Jr. 1999. Impacts of translocation on behavior and survival of timber rattlesnakes, Crotalus horridus. J. Herpetol. 33:45-61.

Sealy, J. 1997. Short-distance translocations of timber rattlesnakes in a North Carolina state park - A successful conservation and management program. Sonoran Herpetol. 10:94-99.

Cheers,
Bob Haase

Thanks for the reply.

Any idea if Sul Ross University library would carry these journals?

The SRSU library may have the journals or alternatively, you should be able to request and interlibrary loan through the university to get them. I have to do this frequently since schools have been forced to cut back. Also, check to see if any of them are available online. Sometimes you can find articles as .pdf files through a Google search. You may want to contact Erika Novak directly, her work on nuisance rattlesnakes in Arizona was a watershed thesis. Good luck.

Bob