Back in September, homeowners called with a baby rattlesnake on the front patio. They were about to have a birthday party, so it was important to have a safe area before the kids arrived. Maggie went out and retrieved this young Mojave Rattlesnake and got it to a better spot.
Northern Mojave Rattlesnake (Crotalus scutulatus scutulatus) https://rattlesnakesolutions.com/MojaveRattlesnake
A Sonoran Gophersnake got stuck in a well … the second one in a month! This one was much larger than the last one and couldn’t get out on its own. Maggie got the snake out and gave some advise on how to prevent another snake from getting in.
From Maggie: “Homeowner called with a huge rattlesnake under some foliage in her backyard. She walked right past it on her way to fill the bird feeders and luckily it was not phased. As soon as I placed the western diamondback into my bucket, a huge gophersnake took the opportunity to appear from behind some bougainvilleas. I was able to relocate the gophersnake into the wash at the end of the street and the western diamondback into a rocky hillside parkrat nest. North Scottsdale “
In this episode, we take a close look at why some of Arizona’s most common landscaping bushes — especially lantana and rosemary — are huge rattlesnake magnets. We start by showing what’s going on inside a typical lantana shrub: deep shade, constant moisture from irrigation, and plenty of rodents. It’s perfect shelter all year, and rattlesnakes take full advantage of it.
We also share a few recent relocation calls where rattlesnakes were found hiding in different types of bushes, to further prove the point.
If you’re trying to make your yard less attractive to rattlesnakes, this video is a great place to start.
A call came in for a large Western Diamondback Rattlesnake coiled on the back porch where the dogs usually hang out. Luckily, the pups have great recall and left the snake alone. Maggie was able to find a great spot for the snake in a deep hole at the base of dense vegetation within the snakes estimated home range.
Late-night Western Diamondback Rattlesnake for CJ in north Phoenix. Though there was a sliver of habitat not too far away, the home was certainly not the first place he would have suspected to find one. Desert ironwood trees are my microhabitat of choice, and he found a deep packrat nest under one for a release site.
Cameos by lone javelina and multiple white-lined sphinx moths.
This Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake was found by a homeowner in her driveway. By the time Cory got there, it had made it into a wash directly behind the house. He was able to find it, however, and take it off the property to put into a carefully selected hiding spot appropriate for the species and season.
A hotel in Tucson called us for help with a rattlesnake resting in front of a guest’s room. Gary went out there to retrieve this absolutely beautiful Tiger Rattlesnake. He checked it out to a more appropriate spot and got reservations at a packrat midden built into the base of a palo verde.
How it feels one hour after telling yourself “I’m just going to have a salad” at the Mexican restaurant… This neonate Western Diamondback was resting on a customer’s front porch after having a very large meal. It patiently let Gary put it in the bucket (not that it could have crawled away very quickly had it tried) and was summarily taken to a deep, rocky refuge on the side of an arroyo where it could safely sleep off its meal.
This stunner of a Mojave Rattlesnake was found in the backyard between flower pots at a home in Florence. The homeowner went to let the dogs out and heard a rattle (everyone’s fine). Austin returned the snake to natural desert and released it directly into a rodent burrow at the base of a creosote mound.
