Other than having a “button” on the end of the tail and a small amount of mottling in between the primary bands, they are exact replicas of the adults and are fully capable of fending for themselves, including having fully functional fangs and venom apparatus’.Īs a rule, threatened Rock Rattlesnakes are a bit more high-strung than the more well-known Western Diamondback Rattler, and their venom is estimated to be one to one and one-half as times more potent. Rock rattlers are oviviparous, which means they give birth to living young, and the six-inch-long neonates (which number from two to six) are typically born in late summer and early fall. Even in mid-winter, this species may make an appearance on exceptionally warm days to bask in the heating rays from the sun, particularly females that are carrying fertilized ova.īreeding usually takes place in the fall, with the female holding on to its mate’s sperm over the winter until spring, when ovulation actually takes place. The process of winter brumation, (not hibernation as the animal does not sleep through the winter, but rather just slows its heart rate and metabolism) generally takes place between late October to mid-March. Interestingly, juveniles will routinely add centipedes to their diet. Adults will also feed on small, nestling rodents. It uses its venom to obtain its prey, which is primarily made up of lizards of appropriate sizes. This species is typically crepuscular (active at dawn and dusk) during the spring and fall when night-time temperatures begin to fall and are nocturnal (active at night) during the summer months when the daytime temperatures exceed intolerable highs.
The pupils are elliptical, and the rattle is proportionately small and is incapable of being heard except when in close proximity.
Like other rattlesnakes, the head of this species is distinctly wider than the neck, giving this animal the famous “diamond-shaped” head. Occasionally an individual will have a very distinctive facial stripe that slants from behind the eye to the corner of the mouth. The bands are the same shade anteriorly to posteriorly, save for the very first one behind the head that is usually quite faded.
#ARE THERE LOTS OF SNAKES IN EL PASO TX FULL#
In other areas, sexual dimorphism is on full display with adult males having a bright green color and females being brown to pink.Īdorning that light gray background coloration are anywhere from 13 to 20 primary bands that are usually quite dark, sometimes even black. This Texas population is the only population that sports this gray color. Whereas the background coloration of its Mottled subspecies (where specimens typically complement the colors of the rocks where they live), Texas specimens of the Banded Rock Rattlesnake's light gray background coloration typically stand out from the rusty red and darker rocks of the Franklin Mountains. As a denizen of the “island mountains” of the Chihuahuan Desert, it prefers to reside in rocky areas such as canyons and dry arroyos. In Texas, this race occurs from the Hueco Mountains eastward to the western Hill Country. Outside of the state it can be seen in the mountains of southern New Mexico and Arizona, southward through the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Sonora, Durango, Zacatecas, Aguascalientes, and Jalisco.Įast of El Paso, this race is replaced by its more mottled subspecies, the Mottled Rock Rattlesnake. The Banded Rock Rattlesnake (Crotalus lepidus klauberi) has an extremely small range in Texas, only occurring in the Franklin Mountains of El Paso county. One of these “other” varieties is a diminutive, brightly colored, and common, yet often unseen, rattlesnake that occurs in far west Texas, and that is the Banded Rock Rattlesnake. Most people associate the name rattlesnake with the large and infamous Western Diamond-backed Rattlesnake, completely unaware that we have seven other species that call Texas home.
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