Crotalus atrox USFWS🐍

Photo: Gary Stolz (original) · Public domain

SpeciesViperidae
Reptiles

🐍Western diamondback rattlesnake

Crotalus atrox Baird & Girard, 1853

The western diamondback rattlesnake or western diamond-backed rattlesnake, is a rattlesnake species and member of the viper family, found in the southwestern United States and Mexico. Like all other rattlesnakes and all other vipers, it is venomous. It is likely responsible for the majority of snakebite fatalities in northern Mexico and the greatest number of snakebites in the U.S. No subspecies are currently recognized.

Text: Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Videos
2
Photos
1
Measurements
9
vs you
≈ 1/9th of your weight
Also called
Western diamond-backed rattlesnake, Western Diamond-backed Rattlesnake
Conservation status
LCLeast concern

IUCN Red List assessment, 2007.

Population trendStable
Key measurements
Body mass
6.7 kg
Body length
2.34 m
Shoulder height
not recorded
Top speed
not recorded
Bite force
not recorded
Maximum lifespan
27 years
All measurements ↓
Facts and figures

Everything we know about the Western diamondback rattlesnake

Typical adult figures. Where a value is an estimate rather than a measurement, it says so.

Body mass
6.7 kgrecord 6.16 kg · ReptTraits
AnAge
Details ↓

data quality: acceptable

Record: largest individual on record

Source: AnAge · AnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR) · CC BY 3.0

Body length
2.34 mmaximum recorded
ReptTraits
Details ↓

Source: ReptTraits · v1.2 (Oskyrko et al. 2024) · CC BY 4.0

Maximum lifespan
27 yearsrecord 27 years · ReptTraits
AnAge
Details ↓

data quality: acceptable

Record: largest individual on record

Source: AnAge · AnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR) · CC BY 3.0

Gestation
167 days
AnAge
Details ↓

data quality: acceptable

Source: AnAge · AnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR) · CC BY 3.0

Litter size
about 14
AnAge
Details ↓

data quality: acceptable

Source: AnAge · AnAge build 15, 2023-07-03 (HAGR) · CC BY 3.0

Activity cycle
Cathemeral
ReptTraits
Details ↓

Source: ReptTraits · v1.2 (Oskyrko et al. 2024) · CC BY 4.0

Foraging mode
Mixed
ReptTraits
Details ↓

Source: ReptTraits · v1.2 (Oskyrko et al. 2024) · CC BY 4.0

Venomous
Yes
ReptTraits
Details ↓

Source: ReptTraits · v1.2 (Oskyrko et al. 2024) · CC BY 4.0

Volume l
6.7 Laverage
Details ↓

Body mass at ~1.0 kg/L, the density of vertebrate tissue.

average = a mean across sexes or species in a group.

Not recorded for Western diamondback rattlesnake yet: shoulder height, top speed, bite force.

Where it sits

Family tree

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. ›phylumChordata
  3. ›classSquamata
  4. ›familyViperidae
  5. ›genusCrotalus
  6. ›speciesCrotalus atrox
Full lineage
  1. orderLizards & snakes · Squamata
  2. infraorderSnakes · Serpentes
  3. subfamilyCrotalinae
  4. genusCrotalus
All 14 branches ↓
  1. kingdomMetazoa
  2. phylumChordata
  3. subphylumCraniata
  4. subphylumVertebrata
  5. superclassGnathostomata
  6. superclassSarcopterygii
  7. superclassTetrapoda
  8. orderSauria
  9. superorderLepidosauria
  10. orderLizards & snakes · Squamata
  11. infraorderSnakes · Serpentes
  12. familyViperidae
  13. subfamilyCrotalinae
  14. genusCrotalus
More

More about the Western diamondback rattlesnake

In other languages
texasi csörgőkígyó (hu), Texas-Klapperschlange (de), Crotalus atrox (es), texasinkalkkarokäärme (fi), Crotalus atrox (fr), Crotalus atrox (it) … and 18 more languages

Animals caught on camera

Real footage of the animals on this site — hunting, fighting, and getting on with it.

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