Searching for the Longtailed rattlesnakes in Western Mexico
Long-tailed rattlesnakes are among’s the world’s most mysterious snakes. The three species of long-tailed rattlesnakes are notoriously hard to find and their ecology and geographic distribution are very poorly known. In an effort to locate additional (and perhaps intermediate) populations of Crotalus stejnegeri or Crotalus lannomi, I explored the westernmost reach of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt, in the state of Nayarit, Mexico.
While talking to ranchers in a small community, I met Jorge, a local farmer with an uncanny knowledge and passion for herpetofauna. He took me to his home, were we talked about the local amphibians and reptiles, and I showed him pictures of the long-tailed rattlesnakes to see if he had seen them in the past.
(If you want to learn more about the long-tailed rattlesnakes, visit my Publications page).
I met Jorge by change while traveling in the Sierras of Nayarit. He had an incredible knowledge of the local herpetofauna (amphibians and reptiles).
Jorge wanted to become a herpetologist, however, because his family had no money, he had to migrate to the US and look for work. I gave him this picture book on snakes to fuel his passion for herpetology
We chatted for a long time about the different snakes that he had seen in his parcela. I was mostly enquiring if he had seen anything that might resemble a longtailed rattlesnake.
I showed him multiple images of different species of rattlesnakes, to see if he could recognize the longtailed rattlesnakes.
At the end of the day, he said that he recognized the snake in this picture, Crotalus stejnegeri. Unfortunately, no confirm record exist yet. We are still working on it.