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rattlesnake today

babbaloo99

babbaloo99

New member
I've never really been field herpin' here in SoCal, but I was so excited today. I was out mountain biking and came across a beautiful western diamond back rattlesnake. He/she was about four feet long and about as thick as my forearm. I watched it as it crossed the path in front of me and slithered into the brush. I was probably a little too close, but I just had to get a good look. Then I had to keep the guy I was with from chucking huge rocks at it (moron). It was already well on it's way into the brush.

Next time I'm out I'm gonna take my camera and pack it in my water pack. It was just too cool! (the pic below is the type of snake)
 

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Nice

Finding a rattlesnake is both shear terror and an adrenaline rush all at the same time. :)
 
CAV said:
Finding a rattlesnake is both shear terror and an adrenaline rush all at the same time. :)
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Why? I have never found a venomous snake. are you usually right on top of them when you encounter the rattlers? Do you catch rattlesnakes?
 
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Any animal that can kill you on contact is worthy of respect.

Yes I have handled them and sometimes you are on top of them before you know it. Everytime you are around one you start thinking about small things like, when was the last time this animal ate, will he bite for defense (dry bite) or will it be a humdinger (wet bite), how far is the nearest medical facility, etc. :)
 

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Where in So.Cal did you encounter the diamondback? We have none in our area. Only Southern Pacifics ,Mojave greens, and of course the sidewinders. The Southern Pacific is often confused with a diamondback due to their markings, but they lack the banded coon tail such as what is in your picture. I thought you only encountered them in the San Diego area and they were C. Ruber ruber, the Red diamondback. Were you near the Arizona border or something? I work with rattlesnakes quite a bit because we do the anti-snake training for dogs. I've handled everything from Great basins to diamondbacks. They really are awesome snakes. I have a very healthy respect for them, but I no longer fear them.
 
Hi Meg! I saw the rattler near where I live in Orange County. It's a mountain bike trail called Peter's Canyon (kinda squished in-between a chunk of housing tracks in Tustin Ranch area). I've seen the tracks every time I run or ride during the week, ranging from young skinny snakes to the thick rattlers, but hadn't actually seen one yet until now.

It clearly had the ringed tail, and I was probably closer to it than I should have been, but I just had to get a close look and I was amazed at the size. I figured it was stretched out on it's way into the brush so I was assuming it couldn't strike too close to me, but I would have hated to find out the hard way! It's like CAV said, the rush of it just gets to you. :crazy01:

My running pals say they see them often on the specific trail I was on, particularly during the evening hours. I didn't believe them on the size till I saw it myself. I'm just glad I didn't see it when it was too late riding down the hill!

I really admire that you guys work with them so closely. That's gotta be awesome.
 
Very cool. Most of them won't bother you unless you really push it. I do find the diamondbacks in Bob's collection are much more nasty tempered than his great basins. The basin's are very mellow on the whole and I have no problem picking them up with a snake pole and a gentle hold on the tail. The newly caught ones tend to be a little more nervous though, and we're very careful with those. I tend to let Bob play with the nasty ones. The Mojave's are pretty mellow, but are tricky little buggers. They have a very good feeding response and Bob said that now when he opens the lid of the viv, they are waiting with their heads near the lid for the mouse to drop in and will strike at anything. Sneaky little dudes, but absolutely gorgeous!
 
The Texas mojaves can be nasty little creatures and the blacktails are actually rather calm. I actually enjoy finding the latter; one of the prettiest vipers in North America IMO. :)
 
Nice pics CAV. BTW, how close can one safely get anyways? Know anyone that's been bitten? I had a cousin get bit by a young sidewinder once (hiding on her front porch) and that was a nasty experience.
 
My rule of thumb........

They can strike 1/2 to 1 times the length of their body, depending on the species, so 3-5 feet is the minimum "safety zone" for my comfort. ;)
 
I took and take crappy pictures of the ones I find around here.. Commonly find Sidewinders and Western's. Those two snakes are the ones I find most often, rather than thier non venomous cousins, like the glossy's or Cali Kings.. Unfortunantly last eve I found me a 5ft Coach Whip, so did some one else who ran the feller over.. Damn..

Great field find.. I am certain it brought a bit of a rush to you.. When I go out in the evenings looking for critters, I have two or three encounters..

Regards..
 
They can strike 1/2 to 1 times the length of their body, depending on the species, so 3-5 feet is the minimum "safety zone" for my comfort.
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Do they have to be coiled up to strike their furthest distance? Or can they strike just as far when stretched out? Just curious. I'll be sure to keep my distance then. I was about four feet from it with it's body straightened out, head furthest away.

TanJ, any pics you can post? Whereabouts do you live?
 
babbaloo99 said:
Hi Meg! I saw the rattler near where I live in Orange County. It's a mountain bike trail called Peter's Canyon (kinda squished in-between a chunk of housing tracks in Tustin Ranch area). I've seen the tracks every time I run or ride during the week, ranging from young skinny snakes to the thick rattlers, but hadn't actually seen one yet until now.

It clearly had the ringed tail, and I was probably closer to it than I should have been, but I just had to get a close look and I was amazed at the size. I figured it was stretched out on it's way into the brush so I was assuming it couldn't strike too close to me, but I would have hated to find out the hard way! It's like CAV said, the rush of it just gets to you. :crazy01:

My running pals say they see them often on the specific trail I was on, particularly during the evening hours. I didn't believe them on the size till I saw it myself. I'm just glad I didn't see it when it was too late riding down the hill!

I really admire that you guys work with them so closely. That's gotta be awesome.
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You could not have seen a W. Diamondback at Peters canyon in Orange county. W. Diamondbacks do not live that far west or anywhere in Orange county. See the range map below for the area of W. Diamondbacks in Cal. However there are a lot of Southern Pacific's in Peters canyon. And contrary to what someone else has said they do have the coon banded tails.
 

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Here is a close up of a Southern Pacific (notice the banded tail.) Some older and darker specimens can have very banded tails while some have more of a blotched pattern.
 

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I am about 15 miles north of Barstow, as you head towards Vegas on the 15.. I am going out friday night to cruise for serpants, and will likely find some as we are close to a full moon. Seems that is when I found more Rattlers cruising the roads.. I found the glossy's and shovel nose shortly after the full moon. No, I do not collect and hold any snakes that I find on or near the road, I just photograph them if I have my camera with me. Your more than welcome to come and cruise the back roads with me on Friday eve..

Regards...
 
Hmmm.....could have been....

You could not have seen a W. Diamondback at Peters canyon in Orange county. W. Diamondbacks do not live that far west or anywhere in Orange county.
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You and Meg could very well be right if that is the case about the SoPac rattler. All I know is it had a very distinct banded tail and the body was lighter in color than the pic you have. It would definitely make sense from a location stand point. :)

TandJ, if I was a bit closer, I'd definitely go out herpin' with ya. Please let us know what you come across!
 
Didn't have my camera with me last night, but I did come across a hatchling side winder last night and a very young Cali King ( unfortunantly the King was roadkill ) that had the most consistant even rings I have ever seen in a Cali King.

Regards...
 
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