Great Basin Rattlesnake

While this shy and solitary reptile may frighten most, rattlesnakes will typically respond to a threat in a predictable manner. When the snake feels threatened, he will move out of the way. If this does not do the trick, he will then shake his rattled tail creating the sound that is often associated with a rattlesnake, saving a bite as his last resort of protection.

All rattlesnakes are ambush predators. Meaning, they do no hunting but instead will sit and wait to ambush their meal. Their eyes provide a binocular type sense of vision, allowing them the ability to accurately estimate a distance while striking.

All rattlesnakes will smell through the use of collecting molecular components through their forked tongues with the help of their Jacobson’s organ, which all reptiles share. The nostrils on a snake are used for solely respiratory purposes.

The Great Basin rattlesnake is a subspecies of the western rattlesnake.

Here in the Truckee Meadows, Great Basin rattlesnakes have been observed at Mayberry Park, Hidden Valley Regional Park, Huffaker Park, and Washoe Lake State Park.

Rattlesnake bites are few and far in between and only 1% of bites are fatal, and only about 30% to 40% bites will actually be accompanied with venom from the snake. Snakes are important to serve as pest control of rodent populations, therefore reducing diseases that rodents will carry. Great Basin rattlesnakes are beautiful and fascinating, serving an important part in our ecosystem.