Tag: speckled

A Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake Escaping the Heat

Posted on by Bryan Hughes

We’ve been to this Ahwatukee home quite a few times over the years, usually for Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnakes. With the property sitting close to a rocky hillside in the preserve, that’s not particularly surprising.

This one was coiled beneath the north-facing back porch awning, realistically about the best place it could have ended up around the home on a day this hot. The shade there gave it a place to escape the worst of the daytime heat.

Austin captured the snake and hiked it back into the preserve within its estimated home range. He released it into a deep caliche cave where we’ve released other rattlesnakes from this same neighborhood in the past.

Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake at the Front Door

Posted on by Bryan Hughes

A homeowner in Ahwatukee was heading out to walk her dog when she stepped through the front door and noticed this Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake coiled quietly in the corner.

The home sits right next to a large drainage ditch that extends up the rocky mountainside of South Mountain, providing a natural travel corridor for wildlife moving between the mountain and the surrounding neighborhood.

Marissa arrived to relocate the unexpected front-door visitor.

Speckled Rattlesnake Found in Tortoise Enclosure

Posted on by Bryan Hughes

A homeowner living alongside the South Mountain Preserve contacted us after discovering a very “whiteish” rattlesnake beneath a water bowl inside their Sonoran Desert Tortoise enclosure. The family has participated in Arizona’s tortoise adoption program for nearly 20 years, so wildlife encounters are nothing new to them.

While servicing the tortoises and refreshing their water, they uncovered the snake and gave us a call. By the time Alivia arrived, the rattlesnake had moved into the shade beneath a nearby hose caddy. Excitedly, she explained to the family that it was actually a beautiful Speckled Rattlesnake, a species specially adapted to the rocky terrain of the mountain preserve directly behind their home.

As fellow desert wildlife enthusiasts, the homeowners shared in the excitement and agreed the best solution was to relocate the snake nearby within its estimated home range, but away from their beloved tortoise pen. During the conversation, the tortoises themselves slowly emerged from their burrow one by one, seemingly curious about all the attention.

Alivia ultimately relocated the Speckled Rattlesnake deeper into the preserve, hiking to an isolated rocky outcrop farther from surrounding homes and buildings.