This Western Diamondback Rattlesnake was found sleeping on a back patio, apparently pretty comfortable with the spot it had chosen.

The snake was extremely relaxed and the capture was about as easy as they come. The homeowner had an elderly dog and was understandably concerned about leaving the rattlesnake in the yard, so David also checked the property for any others. None were found.

The snake was given some water and held until dusk, when temperatures were more appropriate for release. David released it directly into deep cover, and unlike its attitude on the patio, it was very eager to get moving once it was back in the desert.

A teacher doing a morning check of a preschool playground in Ahwatukee spotted a baby rattlesnake coiled on the artificial turf. They weren’t able to keep eyes on it, and by the time Marissa arrived, the tiny snake had disappeared.

She searched under everything and worked through the entire playground without finding it. Eventually, she noticed a small space where the turf met the corner of the building. Lifting the turf revealed a tiny hole underneath.

Marissa poured some water into the hole, and out came the neonate rattlesnake. During the search she also found a baby Chuckwalla hiding around the playground.

There’s a small patch of desert directly behind the school and considerably more habitat across the street, so even though the playground looks isolated from the desert, wildlife doesn’t necessarily see it that way.

The owner of this Cave Creek home is no stranger to finding rattlesnakes taking advantage of the shade near her front door. At this point, calling us when one decides to settle in has become a fairly routine event.

This time it was a Western Diamondback Rattlesnake doing exactly what makes sense on a hot desert day: finding a protected patch of shade and staying there.

Jason captured the snake and relocated it within its estimated home range into a large packrat nest, where it had plenty of deep cover to continue escaping the heat of the day.

The homeowner spotted this neonate Western Diamondback Rattlesnake tucked into a shaded corner of her front courtyard.

The home has a large wash running behind it, and several of the front gates had small access points that a snake this size could easily fit through. For a newborn rattlesnake wandering around trying to figure out life, that’s likely all it took to end up in the courtyard.

Jeff captured the little snake and relocated it just outside the neighborhood, releasing it into a rodent burrow tucked against a stack of boulders where it had plenty of cover.