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.
A homeowner in Tucson called about a rattlesnake on the front porch. They’d just hired some people to do some yard work, and a couple of packrat nests had been removed. When Gary arrived, he found this nice looking Northern Blacktailed Rattlesnake, likely displaced by the rodent nest removal. He relocated it to a different packrat nest on a rocky slope within its estimated home range.
A call came in for a pair of Western Diamondback Rattlesnakes at a property in Tucson. They were both resting alongside a planter box in the yard, likely taking advantage of the higher ambient moisture. Gary safely captured them and took them to a perfect spot within their estimated home range.
Nick was called out to pick up this Western Diamondback Rattlesnake found cruising around a backyard in Tucson. While he was hiking it out to release, he spotted another Western Diamondback Rattlesnake in ambush, a good indication that he’s found the right spot.
To those who have followed us for awhile: what in the photos might a reason this snake was here and what could be done to prevent future encounters?
From Dave on a late November snake relocation call: “Was called out to a home that I’ve been to many times over the years. A rattlesnake was coiled and rattling at the cats at the sliding glass door. As I was preparing to leave,I discovered a smaller Diamondback heading across the driveway and towards the carport. An interesting observation that the basal segment on the smaller gup was yellow, not black.”
– The reference on the rattle color is that the first segment of Western Diamondback Rattlesnake’s rattles is typically all or at least mostly black. This one was a little interesting.
