Crotalus Snakes of Clark County, Nevada

The Crotalus genus contains venomous pit vipers found within the Viperidae family. These vipers are known as rattlesnakes, or “rattlers”. The word Crotalus stems from the Greek word krótalon, meaning “rattle” or “castanet”. This refers to the distinctive rattle found on the end of the snake’s tail. The range of this genus covers an area from southern Canada to northern Argentina. This representation of Crotalus rattlesnakes encompasses all of Clark County, Nevada, extending north towards Coyote Springs, west to Sandy Valley, east to the Colorado River, and south towards Laughlin. This guide seeks to identify six Crotalus snake species commonly found within the Clark County range. For each snake, a representative photo will be included in addition to a description of each organism’s niche based on their abiotic environment, biotic interactions, and key traits/behaviors. menos ↑