Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Got a call yesterday from a good friend. He was cleaning out his basement when low and behold he heard a sound. I just could not figure out what it was and where it was coming from until he turned around and found this little beauty about 24" behind him. He called me to come get it. I brought it home and gave it a couple mice. Would love to keep it but I think I may just look at it a couple days and release it

Foot Hill Reptiles

awsome what kind of rattlenskae is that ? its very beautiful!

That is a Western Rattle Snake. Forgive me if I am not correct and correct me if I am wrong, I am not to up the Viper species but this snake was collected from and area of Amador County about 15 miles west of Ione, California. according to my field guide it is a Western Rattle Snake
Foot Hill Reptiles

probaly a western like you said but there are like 20 subspecies or the western rattler group

I know. I wanted to say Western Diamondback but I don't think they come this far north
Foot Hill Reptiles

i dont know what it is eather but its beaytiful eather way!

then it is a Northern Pacific rattlesnake (Crotalus oreganus oreganus)..The field guide you are using is quite a bit outdated if it is still referring to these animals as "western rattlesnakes"...The whole viridis complex was split up quite some time ago by taxonomists...

A note about re-releasing animals back into the wild...PLEASE do not do so if you've kept this animal more than a few days...you may be unwittingly introducing pathogens into wild populations of animals that have no resistance to them...Also, consider that in many areas it is illegal to re-release animals that have been in captivity longer than 72 hours...Please check your local & state regs before doing so.

If you do release, please do not release this animal very far from where it was captured. Many studies have shown that North American crotalids spend virtually their entire lives in a set geographical area...removal from this area often leads to the death of the snake. When i release animals that have been found in people's yards, I try to keep the release site within a quarter mile of where the snake was found...

-AzAtrox

I guess I should have mentioned that I have already been through the leaps and bounds and have th written consent of the CDFG to relocate snakes. Trust me I know what I am doing when it comes to relocation. Been there done that. The field guide I used was an old one as unfortunately I misplaced my NAS field guide but have now found it., Thanks for the input
Foot Hill Reptiles

So to go through the "leaps and bounds" and get the written consent of the Conservation to relocate snakes they don't require said person to be able to accurately identify the snakes they would be potentially relocating? Seems like it might be important but maybe not?

Just curious?

Apparently not. I did not have to do anything like that. I simply talked to what seemed at the time like a million people. Eventually talking to a small game specialist with the departments HQ in Sacramento and who then gave the go ahead and spoke with the local Game warden for the areas in witch this would take place who also gave the go ahead. they only really had to say it was great to have someone in the area that was willing to do this and also to now have someone to refer people to in the area and it was much better than simply killing them like so many others already do. There only rule they gave me is I can not let them go on private land unless I get consent from the land owner and I can not let them go in populated public places such as city parks, Lastly I am a snake enthusiast and have been all my life. Do not think bad of me for providing a service to my community and to snakes in general. No matter what the biologists or anyone here says I know as well as everyone ells that a Snake has a much better chance with relocation that with a mad farmer holding a 22 so with that being said no problem I am happy to do what I can when I can do it.
Foot Hill Reptiles

Looks like northern pacific or a basin to me. I find northerns and basins in oregon all the time. Beautiful snake either way!
Nate