Sabre52
Cave Dweller 
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,503
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Post by Sabre52 on Oct 30, 2013 10:35:42 GMT -5
Howdy folks, Got called out on another snake rescue yesterday evening. This one actually turned out to be a poisonous snake, a nice little 30 inch Western Diamondback. Rattlers are quite rare here on the ranch. I thanked the folks for keeping it in view and not killing it out of hand, put it in my snake bucket, and took it out to the boonies and released it after I took a few pics. He was a bit cranky so I just snapped a couple while he was still in the bucket as my wife didn't want to herd it around the yard while I tried to take pics in a more natural setting *L* Anyway, here's a pic of the pretty rascal in my collecting bucket.....Mel  |
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bhiatt
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since July 2012
Posts: 1,532
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Post by bhiatt on Oct 30, 2013 11:10:23 GMT -5
cool looking. That snakes pattern has a trance like effect.
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grayfingers
Cave Dweller
Member since November 2007
Posts: 4,575 
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Post by grayfingers on Oct 30, 2013 11:14:55 GMT -5
Very pretty snake, I'll bet he was glad his day ended up as it did thanks to you.
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Deleted
Deleted Member
Member since January 1970
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2013 11:36:08 GMT -5
wild atrox alwayts look so rangy and wirey to me. Like a sprinter, ready to explode out of the blocks.
Good on you Mel. He'll be back next spring (just as he has his entire life) and the folks will likely never see him again. Just as before you relocated him.
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,503
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Post by Sabre52 on Oct 30, 2013 11:39:00 GMT -5
This rascal was under a blackjack oak tree in the leaves and grass and his camo was almost perfect. He was spotted by the folk's dog. Amazingly difficult to spot one of these fellows when they are not moving about.
Scott, I hauled him a good long distance away by car and turned him loose in a better habitat for snakes than he was in. If he comes back, it's gonna be a bit of a long crawl *S*..Mel
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2013 13:32:42 GMT -5
If memory serves, studies in Arizona put them returning home after as far as a 5 mile relocation. I found it. Here is the study. |
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,503
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Post by Sabre52 on Oct 30, 2013 13:47:44 GMT -5
Scott, I had not read that study but have seen a couple of others. I'm not a fan of long distance relocation or any relocation for that matter but took this one farther than five miles because I wanted to turn him loose far from houses where there were good rodents, almost no traffic, lots of den areas etc. Figured at least he'd have a chance instead of being killed as most all found here on the ranch are killed. I suspect there is a den near the area where I got him as most rattlers I've had reported are from that area...Mel
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Deleted
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Member since January 1970
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2013 13:53:11 GMT -5
If you ever see one that looks like this, I want it!  |
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kaldorlon
spending too much on rocks
Member since October 2013
Posts: 413
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Post by kaldorlon on Oct 30, 2013 17:39:48 GMT -5
how did you get a picture of my ex?  |
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jamesp
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2012
Posts: 36,612
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Post by jamesp on Oct 30, 2013 20:20:07 GMT -5
Good for you Mel. The TV show about (preacher) snake handlers mentioned the western rattler. They claim the poison is very deadly.
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Post by Woodyrock on Nov 12, 2013 2:32:25 GMT -5
You are such a better person than me..I would have turned him into a hat band. Years ago, working on the Hanford Nuclear reservation we had a BIG rattlesnake show up. Being forbidden to harm them we called the snake guy, who gather him up, and hauled it away. Next day it was back, snake guy came and hauled it away telling us it was not the same one since he took it miles away. Next day it was back, so we captured it and painted a #1 on it, snake gut takes it away again telling us it was not the same snake. Snake was back the next day, number 1 still painted on it. Snake guy takes it away again, and releases it on the other side of the Columbia River. We never saw it again. Just something about a big rattlesnake in a building that is not right.
BTW, what is that yellow one? During a survival course in Panama, we were told to keep well away for the yellow ones. I think they were call a Fer de Lance.
Woody
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,503
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Post by Sabre52 on Nov 12, 2013 9:18:53 GMT -5
Woody, I spent almost 30 years at the AG Dept either wholesale killing animals causing damage or investigating wildlife kills. Lots of bad karma there and I've kind of lost my taste for killing any animal. Even rattlers are pretty when you look at them and all have their place in the environment so now I'm all about live and let live *S*.
Scott can say for sure but that one pic appears to be an albino or partial albino rattler....Mel
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Post by rockpickerforever on Nov 12, 2013 10:23:43 GMT -5
Actually, it is amelanistic. It is lacking the dark color only. A true albino would not have the yellow. Here's my kind of snake  Not venomous, but could probably OD you on sugar, lol. Someone had some talent! |
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,503
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Post by Sabre52 on Nov 12, 2013 11:32:41 GMT -5
*L* OK, not to quibble, but all the definitions I've seen for albinism define it as the inability to produce melanin or amelanistic. Albinistic and amelanistic are therefore, synonymous. Albino animals often show shades of yellow as albinism is often incomplete, but I think in the pet trade they try to differentiate the colors, in spite of the scientific definition making the two conditions fall in the same category, to accommodate separate pricing. Whatever, dang pretty snakes anyway and I flat out love that cake. Very creative!.....Mel
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Post by rockpickerforever on Nov 12, 2013 12:04:30 GMT -5
Yeah, I guess it depends on who you are talking to. Reptile breeders like to break things down a little more than the average person. It is more descriptive to call them amelanistic, leucistic, true albino, etc. It's all in the genes. Whatever you call them, they are beautiful animals and cool to look at. Since I was in this crowd a few years back, that's how I learned to call them. Had several flavors of cornsnakes and others. Nothing hot, though. I leave those for Scott. Albino  Leucistic  |
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Post by Hard Rock Cafe on Nov 12, 2013 13:49:52 GMT -5
My daughter has an amelanistic corn snake named Rubius because of it's pink and red coloring. Very pretty snake and not what I would think of as albino, but I understand that might be the proper scientific classification.
I nearly got an anerythristic corn snake as a partner. It's unbelievable how many different colors breeders have developed.
Chuck
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 12, 2013 14:29:20 GMT -5
When we are speaking of animals with more than one color in their pattern we have to redefine "albino". In this case albino means genetic coloration mutation.
In the case of the gorgeous diamondback above it's actually a rare for of amelanism,(lacking black). It's genes give it an enxyme called tyrsosinase. Tyrosinase eats tyrosine which is an amino acid building block for melanin (black coloration).
One can also have a snake lacking yellow (axanthic) and that would be a grey/black snake with no browns or yellows. If we carefully breed these two mutations together we can end upp with a specimen lacking both black and yellow. That would be called "snow" and was first found in cornsnakes. Now present in dozens of taxa.
The Leucistic Jean shared above is yet another mutation effecting color and pattern. No pattern, no color, blue eyes "leucistic". Leucistic simply means white and is in example is perfectly descriptive.
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Post by Hard Rock Cafe on Nov 14, 2013 9:49:33 GMT -5
Scott it sounds like you know a thing or two about genetics and breeding! Thanks for the education!
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agatemaggot
Cave Dweller
Member since August 2006
Posts: 2,195
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Post by agatemaggot on Nov 17, 2013 20:17:05 GMT -5
Some of the Timbre Rattlers on the upper Miss. River move over 20 miles from the den area. The D.N.R. radio tagged a bunch of them !
Harley
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grizman
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since July 2011
Posts: 878
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Post by grizman on Nov 17, 2013 20:40:13 GMT -5
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