Western diamondback rattlesnake

Crotalus atrox · The western diamondback rattlesnake is a venomous viper found across the southwestern United States and northern Mexico.

Also called Western diamondback, Texas diamond-back, Western diamond-backed rattlesnake.

Western diamondback rattlesnake
Photo: Holger Krisp, CC BY 3.0
Western diamondback rattlesnake
Photo: Patrick Alexander from Las Cruces, NM, CC0
Western diamondback rattlesnake
Photo: Gzen92, CC BY-SA 4.0

Taxonomy

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassReptilia
OrderSquamata
FamilyViperidae
GenusCrotalus
SpeciesCrotalus atrox

Where it lives

Deserts and scrub from Arkansas and Oklahoma to southeast California and Mexico.

Fun facts

  • Extra-large individuals can weigh as much as 6.7 kg (15 lb).
  • A single bite can inject as much as 700-800 mg of venom, an enormous dose thanks to its large venom glands.
  • In the wild, this snake can go without eating for up to two years at a stretch.
  • Newborns are venomous the instant they're born, and a mother may give birth to as many as 25 babies up to 30 cm (12 in) long.

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Facts and taxonomy adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).