I have always had a soft spot for
Crotalus rattlesnakes. The blunt face, forward-set eyes, glaring supraocular scales and perfectly round, pronounced heat pits are just gorgeous to me! I've been the owner of a
Crotalus oreganus oreganus that I got from a "friend" in a sad, emaciated condition...but I always found myself ogling diamondbacks at every reptile show.
I was working the Hamburg, PA show this past Saturday with a few friends and noticed this stunning fellow on the table:
It was a male Mojave (
Crotalus scutulatus) x Prairie (
Crotalus viridis viridis) hybrid. I'd never seen anything quite like his busy pattern and camo colors.
At the end of the show, the seller was shocked he hadn't sold and didn't want to take him home since he didn't fit into any breeding plans. He offered me the snake at a price I simply couldn't pass up
.
I'm absolutely thrilled with this rattler. He is one of the calmest, most laid-back buzztails I've worked with. He has 12 links on his rattle, and is pushing 4 feet long and taking down medium f/t rats with ease! He's got quite the LOUD rattle too- he buzzed a bit the first night and I could hear him clearly at the other end of the hallway with the snake room door closed! He's calmed down even more now, and usually greets me with a few rattles before relaxing and watching me from the front of the cage. He's got a Boamaster trap/hide box but I have yet to see him leave the front area of the cage. He seems quite curious and alert. He ate for me on Wednesday too, which always makes me happy.
I'm looking forward to enjoying this fellow..CAREFULLY....for years to come!
P.S. I named him Sinestro. It seemed fitting for such a sinister-looking critter.
For those who are curious about the venom, we aren't sure exactly what is going to be going on with this guy's complex. Mojave rattlesnakes possess a venom considered by many to be the most potent and debilitating of any North American species. This is due to the presence of a very strong presynaptic neurotoxin, Mojave toxin, that varies in potency with the locality of the snakes and results in visual disturbances, inability to swallow and speak, flaccid paralysis and seizure. A very small subpopulation possess a milder version of the Mojave toxin (venom A) but the vast majority produce the stronger venom B. Some localities of Prairie rattlesnakes also produce Mojave toxin A. Other components include hemorraghins, procoagulants, proteinase inhibitors, nucleosides, and potentially bioactive amines, nerve growth factors, and myotoxins.
Cro-FAB was produced using large percentages of Mojave venom, so it is particularly effective against venoms containing the Mojave toxin. Regardless, I plan to be verry careful to avoid a bite from this fellow!
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