Just after the Western Yellow-bellied Racer we found this rattler stretched along the side of the trail, not moving. It must have been sleeping, as it never stuck out its tongue while we photographed it. I prodded it with a stick to see if it was still alive and it slowly woke-up, smelled around a bit and shuffled off the trail.
After asking several experts at work, the conclusion is that it was probably sick, especially looking at its lack of muscle tone along the ground. :(
5' gravid female
Hit on the road but still active, moved off to the side and crawled off
82 degrees, barometer 29.79 and falling
Crotalus is a genus of venomous pit vipers found only in the Americas from souther
