Reptile & Amphibian Forums

could some one post a pic of the two snakes im having a hard time telling what type this one is that i captured. i found him on a busy road near my house and decided to capture him so i can release him in the franklin mountains this weekend. thanks

Steve

It all depends on area of capture. The overlap range is very small. If the snake was found in the desert areas, it is probably a mojave. If it was in the foothills or angeles forest, it was probably a western.

Here is a mojave. Mojaves often have this green coloration, but westerns can be green as well. Note the following on this animal: the head is fairly skinny for a rattlesnake, the color and pattern fade a little before the tail, and the tailrings that encircle the tail have wider white bands than black bands. Mojaves usually get about 3 feet in length.

Here is a helleri, or southern pacific rattlesnake (subspecies). The head is more of the typical triangular shape of a rattlesnake. There isnt really any pattern or color fade to the tail, and the rings are about equal in size and not as high contrast as the mojave. The ones I have found have also had a little bit of yellow right before the rattle. This is the normal color for a young one, but they get darker as they age, usually becoming very dark with light bordered diamonds. This is the only southern I have found alive, so I only have pics of this one. I can give you more mojave pics if you like. If you live in an area where both live, they do intergrade, and it can be hard to tell. If you can get a picture of it I would recommend posting it.

from his reference to the Franklin Mountains I think he is in the El Paso Texas area and is refering to the difference between Mojaves and Western Diamond Backs (C. atrox), not Western Rattlesnakes (C.oreganus ssp.). Unless there is a Franklin range in Ca.? Another good reason to learn a little latin. It removes the confusion. Here in Az. there is always someone running around saying "I caught a Sonoran" LOL. Sonoran What?

My bad, C. oreganus helleri looks a lot like C. scutulatus as well, and I know it is a subspecies of the western rattlesnake, thats what I called it before I knew more about them, so thats what I thought he was refering to. I didnt know where that mountain range was, I just assumed he was talking about the two snakes in my area from which I have learned a lot about.

i took some pictures before i released him if you want to see him email me and ill send you a pic. im still guessing he was a mojave though. he was released in the franklin mountains yesterday.