‹ Compare two snakes
Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake vs Tiger Rattlesnake
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(c) Mark Pollock, some rights reserved (CC BY)
Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake
Crotalus pyrrhus
VenomousEtienne Falquet, no rights reserved
Tiger Rattlesnake
Crotalus tigris
VenomousThe quick way to tell
Look at the head. The Southwestern Speckled Rattlesnake has a large head for its body. The Tiger Rattlesnake has a strikingly small head and a big rattle, and lacks the Speckled's dark tail rings.
Head ★ This settles it
Large triangular head, wide for the body.
Very small head for its body, still wider than the slender neck.
Pattern
Fuzzy, speckled blotches or crossbands that become clearer toward the tail.
Many narrow, dark crossbands from neck to tail — bands, not blotches or diamonds.
Eyes
Vertical slit pupil; heat-sensing pit between eye and nostril.
Vertical slit pupil; heat-sensing pit between eye and nostril.
Pits
A deep heat-sensing pit on each side of the face, between the eye and the nostril.
A deep heat-sensing pit on each side of the face, between the eye and the nostril.
Tail
Dark rings ahead of the rattle.
Banded like the body, without bold black rings; ends in a large rattle.
What it does
Relies on camouflage among rocks; temperament varies a lot from snake to snake.
Usually rattles a warning; most bites happen when people handle it.
Where it lives
Southern California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and western Arizona, south into northwestern Mexico.
Central, south-central and southeastern Arizona (US only), south into Sonora, Mexico.