Even within contiguous habitat, some speckled rattlesnakes groups may be darker than in the surrounding areas. This is one example – one of a much darker-than-usual group that lives in a relatively small section of volcanic rock, completely surrounded by iron-rich rock. A short distance from where these snakes live, they are the more typical orange/red color they are throughout the rest of that range. This is by no means the darkest seen there, either. I have seen one young one that is grey on black, and will likely darken as it ages.
Mar
5th
2017