AV Poppies and a Mojave Green

I was out near the Poppy Reserve on Saturday and found more than just poppies. I didn't see this Mojave Green until I almost stepped on it. The sound of its rattle sent me jumping about 10 feet in the air. I've seen a lot of rattlesnakes, but never a Mojave Green, which is one of the deadliest snakes in North America. Their venom (referred to as Mojave toxin) is a neurotoxin and is about ten times more potent than a diamondback. In addition, these snakes have a reputation for being very aggressive.

I was amazed at the amount of people at and near the reserve. Many were posing for pictures while sitting in the poppy fields. I saw one couple taking pictures of their little baby neck deep in poppies. I wondered how many of these people knew what else was lurking in the pretty flowers.

Be careful out there, as one of these could ruin your day.
Rudy

D700, 24-70mm
P.S. Live view was nice here, as it provided a greater distance between my face and its fangs.

Here's one more.

Amazing site, Rudy. They be plenty potent little guys. This site would have me streaking for the vehicle and locking the doors.
Although I've never encountered one of these fellows, I have bags full of stories regarding diamond backs & sidewinders. Including one where I touched a diamond back that was curled up in a hole along side a hill. Everyone in front of me missed the thing, not sure how, but as I reached the hand hole I felt it and then saw it flicking his tongue for temperature checks. From that point on as a kid I never reached without looking first.
I also had a good friend back in the 60's doing a cover shot for a magazine article on Billy the Kid. He knelt down at the graveside to capture the shot and was nailed by a sidewinder just above his knee.
I could go on........

See that beautiful graceful S curve in the neck, this snake is ready to strike. Rule of thumb a rattler can strike about half its body length, and a really big Green would be about 4 ft. Because they are a small snake that's why their venom is so deadly. Notice his color and camouflage, perfectly adapted to their environment and a great image Rudy. This is a reminder that rattlers are a part of our landscape photography here in the Great Southwest. Rattlers who have denned up all winter will be coming out of hibernation. Early morning predawn they won't be out if it's cold, summer warm different story. I have a friend that I used to go mineral collecting with and anytime we went out I could almost guarantee he would almost step on a rattler as we moved out in the early morning cool for our prospect. Fortunately all were so cold and torpid I don't think they could have struck, they didn't even rattle.

Paul

Excellent image! I never knew rattlers were out there. I have taken my dogs romping out in AV through the poppies. I will certainly be more careful in the future.

Yowsa, what a spectacular find. Never thought that was rattler country. Great images!

Hey, look out!!! Very cool image. Just to let people know, anywhere in the state below about 4000ft. is rattlesnake country!!!

Chris

That is scary. I almost stepped on a rattlesnake on a trail near my house this past weekend but my companion warned me about it so I missed it. It started rattling!

Spectacular and potentially life changing find! Even with multiple rattler encounters, I still find myself getting complacent on occasion. It's easy to be concentrating on finding a new composition and forgetting about the snake hazards. There's more than one reason why cowboys of old wore leather chaps.