Eastern Diamond-Backed Rattlesnake, Anna, Clearwater FL, pg 2

The photo at right shows the markings of the posterior of the rattlesnake, including three rattles and a tail with a blackened distal region along with four proximal black bands separated by pale, almost white bands. The tail abruptly narrows at the fourth ring from the end, at the snake's vent (not visible in this dorsal view) indicating that this is a female. A male's tail tapers gently from the vent, as the hemipenis is sheathed in the tail and thus fleshes out that portion of the male's anatomy. At three feet in length, this specimen is likely two to three years old and possibly sexually mature. The snake has only three rattles, and the last appears to be the button it possessed at birth. New rattles are formed when a rattlesnake sheds its skin, so this specimen has shed its skin at least three times. Anna noted, however, that a freshly-shed skin was found the next day in her yard, so this snake, if found again, will now have at least four rattles. If the photos on the previous and following pages, which show the snake's head, are closely examined, the snake's eyes cannot be discerned. That is typical of a snake that is about to shed, as the skin over the eyes becomes opaque at this stage, rendering the snake nearly blind.  NEXT PAGE ---- PAGE MENU:   1  *  2  *  3  *

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