This project aims to increase public awareness about rattlesnakes and their integral role in the coastal ecosystem at Montana de Oro State Park. My thesis research will focus on the effect of dehydration on rattlesnake reproduction. Females most definitely require some amount of water to survive and thus reproduce, but how much does it affect their ability to produce viable offspring? We will soon find out! Our goal is to capture 18 female Northern Pacific Rattlesnakes (Crotalus oreganus oreganus) and implant them with radio transmitters so that we can easily locate them. Half of these snakes will receive a water supplement twice a month, the other half will not receive a water supplement. At the end of the study, the snakes will be brought into the lab to give birth at which time we will collect data on litter characteristics. less ↑