A call to retrieve a Gila Monster ended up with a Chuckwalla in hand. These large lizards are mistaken for gilas more often than you might realize, along with any other large lizard. These are, of course, entirely harmless unless you’re a flower.

A call to retrieve a Gila Monster ended up with a Chuckwalla in hand. These large lizards are mistaken for gilas more often than you might realize, along with any other large lizard. These are, of course, entirely harmless unless you’re a flower.
This newborn Mojave Rattlesnake was spotted on a back patio at a Surprise home … barely. This little snake was about 7″ long and as big around as a pencil. In mid-September, when this was found, that would be just a few weeks old.
This Western Groundsnake almost didn’t make it. Marissa was able to free it, and now the homeowner knows that these small snakes are more effective towards the intended target (scorpions) than the trap itself.
This Western Diamondback Rattlesnake found an interesting spot up the stairs at the edge of a patio. It may have been using the plants which were recently removed from the deep flowerbed below, and ended up needing a new place to spend the winter. Thankfully for everyone, including the snake, Dave found it a perfect replacement spot.
Not exactly the coziest spot to spend the winter, but it may not be the snake’s fault. Without very specific relocation sites, rattlesnakes moved by the fire department are left to desperately try and find replacement conditions to survive … and often fail. Marissa helped it to a more suitable location.
One of two Western Diamondback Rattlesnakes found under a patio in Oro Valle in November. Situations like this can be a perfect spot to hibernate. Nik was careful to move them to a suitable replacement site.
A homeowner callerd about a blue snake, so Marissa was already excited about coming to get a speckled rattlesnake out of the yard. When she captured it, she found out it was sitting on top of a Western Diamondback Rattlesnake. A few days prior, she was at the neighbor’s place getting a Tiger Rattlesnake. Sounds like a great neighborhood!
The view from the patio furniture at a recently rattlesnake fenced property. Without knowing it was there, it is really hard to see at all.
This little Western Diamondback Rattlesnake was about as small as they get, maybe 7″ long and brand new. The homeowner spotted it in the backyard in north Phoenix, and called Marissa to come help the little one be somewhere else.
Nik was talking to a homeowner after he just caught the rattlesnake they’d called him for, and noticed this out of the corner of his eye. At this point, to us, that pattern might as well glow. It got a ride with the other one to more suitable surroundings.