California Reptiles & Amphibians

Crotalus stephensi - Panamint Rattlesnake



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Range in California: Green

Red: Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake





Venomous and Potentially Dangerous!

Adult, White/Inyo Mountains,
Inyo County
Adult, Inyo County
© Brad Alexander
Adult, Argus Range,
southern Inyo County
Adult, Inyo County
© John Stoklosa
Juvenile, White/Inyo Mountains, Inyo County

Adult, western Nevada
© Brad Alexander

Adult, southern Sierras, southern Inyo County © Carl Brune

Some knowledgable herpers have looked at this photo and identified this snake as a Northern Pacific Rattlesnake, C. o. oreganus. More information about the controversy of identifying rattlesnakes from this region can be found here.

Rattle



Habitat, White/Inyo Mountains,
Inyo County
Habitat, White/Inyo Mountains,
Inyo County
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Rattlesnakes are important members of the natural community. They will not attack, but if disturbed or cornered, they will defend themselves. Reasonable watchfulness should be sufficient to avoid snakebite. Give them distance and respect.

 
Description
Venomous
The venom of this snake is potentially dangerous to humans.
Size
Adults are 23-52 inches in length (58-132 cm) averaging 2 - 3 feet. Young 10 inches.
Appearance
A heavy-bodied, venomous pit viper, with a thin neck and a large triangular head. Pupils are elliptical. Scales are keeled.

Shows a great variety of body coloration which usually allows the snake to blend into its environment - tan, yellowish, orangish, gray, off-white, brown. The body is marked with a pattern consisting of dark speckled banded markings, which can be vague or distinct. A dark band or bands on the tail, but not usually alternating with light bands. The tail has a rattle on the end, consisting of loose interlocking segments. A new rattle segment is added each time the skin is shed. Newly-hatched snakes do not have a rattle - just a single button which does not make a sound.

Heat sensing pits on the sides of the head help the snake to locate prey by their warmth. Long, hollow, movable fangs connected to venom glands inject a very toxic venom which quickly immobilize prey. The snake can control the amount of venom injected and the fangs are replaced if broken. Bites on humans are potentially dangerous without immediate medical treatment. Even a dead snake can bite and inject venom if the jaws reflexively open when they are touched.
Behavior
Primarily nocturnal and crepuscular during periods of excessive daytime heat, but also active during daylight when the temperature is more moderate. Not active during cooler periods in Winter.

An ambush hunter, it may wait near lizard or rodent trails, striking at and releasing passing prey. The snake then follows the trail of the envenomated animal and swallows it whole. Prey is also found while the snake is actively moving.

When alarmed, a rattlesnake shakes its tail back and forth. The movement rubs the rattle segments together producing a buzzing sound which serves as a warning. Juveniles are born with only a silent button at the end of the tail.
Diet
Eats small mammals, lizards, and birds.
Reproduction
Live-bearing; young born July and August.
Range
Found in central eastern California, from aproximately the Mojave River north along the east side of the Sierras into Nevada.
Sea level to 8,000 ft. (2,440 m).
Habitat
Associated mostly with habitats composed of rocky outcrops and boulders, but also found in creosote bush and cactus deserts and open coniferous woodlands.
Taxonomic Notes
MICHAEL E. DOUGLAS, MARLIS R. DOUGLAS, GORDON W. SCHUETT, LOUIS W. PORRAS, AND
BLAKE L. THOMASON (Genealogical Concordance between Mitochondrial and Nuclear DNAs Supports Species Recognition of the Panamint Rattlesnake (Crotalus mitchellii stephensi) Copeia, 2007(4), pp. 920–932) using molecular data, showed that this snake is a distinct species, not a subspecies of Crotalus mitchellii.
Conservation Issues  (Conservation Status)
None

Taxonomy
Family Viperidae Vipers
Genus Crotalus Rattlesnakes
Species


stephensi Panamint Rattlesnake
Original Description
Crotalus mitchellii - (Cope, 1861) - Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia, Vol. 13, p. 293
Crotalus mitchellii stephensi - Klauber, 1930 - Trans. San Diego Soc. Nat. Hist., Vol. 6, No. 3, p. 108

from Original Description Citations for the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America © Ellin Beltz

Meaning of the Scientific Name
Crotalus - Greek - krotalon - a rattle - refers to the rattle on the tail
mitchellii
- honors Mitchell, S. Weir
stephensi - honors Stephens, Frank

from Scientific and Common Names of the Reptiles and Amphibians of North America - Explained © Ellin Beltz

Alternate Names
Formerly Crotalus mitchellii stephensi - Panamint Rattlesnake

Related or Similar California Snakes
C. m. pyrrhus - Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake
C. s. scutulatus - Northern Mohave Rattlesnake
C. c. cerastes - Mojave Desert Sidewinder
C. o. lutosus - Great Basin Rattlesnake
C. o. oreganus - Northern Pacific Rattlesnake

More Information and References
Natureserve Explorer

California Dept. of Fish and Game

Living With Rattlesnakes

Tucson Herpetological Society: Living With Venomous Reptiles pdf

California Department of Fish and Game: Rattlesnakes in California


Rattlesnake Bites

California Poison Control System: Rattlesnake Bites

University of Arizona: Rattlesnakes

Justin Schwartz' Rattlesnake Bite Story and Pictures


Stebbins, Robert C. A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians. 3rd Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2003.

Behler, John L., & F. Wayne King. The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Reptiles and Amphibians. Alfred A. Knopf, 1992.

Bartlett, R.D. , & Alan Tennant. Snakes of North America - Western Region. Gulf Publishing Co., 2000.

Ernst, Carl H., Evelyn M. Ernst, & Robert M. Corker. Snakes of the United States and Canada. Smithsonian Institution Press, 2003.

Wright, Albert Hazen & Anna Allen Wright. Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada. Cornell University Press.

Brown, Philip R. A Field Guide to Snakes of California. Gulf Publishing Co., 1997.Ernst, Carl. H. Venomous Reptiles of North America. Smithsonian Institution Press, 1999.

Klauber, Laurence M. Rattlesnakes. University of California Press. (Abridged from the 1956 two volume Rattlesnakes: Their Habits, Life Histories, and Influence on Mankind.) University of California Press, 1982.


Conservation Status

The following status listings come from the Special Animals List which is published several times each year by the California Department of Fish and Game.

This animal is not included on the Special Animals List, which indicates that there are no significant conservation concerns for it in California.
Organization
Status Listing
U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA)
California Endangered Species Act (CESA)
California Department of Fish and Game
Bureau of Land Management
USDA Forest Service
Natureserve Global Conservation Status Ranks
World Conservation Union - IUCN Red List






 

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