''Crotalus concolor'', commonly known as the midget faded rattlesnake, faded rattlesnake and yellow rattlesnake, is a
pit viper species found in the
western United States
The Western United States (also called the American West, the Far West, and the West) is the region comprising the westernmost states of the United States. As American settlement in the U.S. expanded westward, the meaning of the term ''the Wes ...
. It is a small rattlesnake known for its faded color pattern. Like all other pit vipers, it is
venomous
Venom or zootoxin is a type of toxin produced by an animal that is actively delivered through a wound by means of a bite, sting, or similar action. The toxin is delivered through a specially evolved ''venom apparatus'', such as fangs or a ...
.
Description
This snake grows to a maximum length of . The smallest gravid female measured was .
[ Klauber LM. 1997. Rattlesnakes: Their Habitats, Life Histories, and Influence on Mankind. Second Edition. 2 volumes. Reprint, University of California Press, Berkeley. .]
The color pattern of this species consists of a pinkish, pale brown, yellow-brown, straw-colored, reddish, or yellow-brown ground color, overlaid with a series of brown elliptical or rectangular dorsal blotches. However, most specimens are gray or silvery. In juveniles, the pattern is distinct, but becomes faded in adults, almost to the point where it is indistinguishable from the ground color.
[Campbell JA, Lamar WW. 2004. The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere. Comstock Publishing Associates, Ithaca and London. 870 pp. 1500 plates. .]
Geographic range
Found in the United States in the
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
and
Green River Green River may refer to:
Rivers
Canada
*Green River (British Columbia), a tributary of the Lillooet River
*Green River, a tributary of the Saint John River, also known by its French name of Rivière Verte
*Green River (Ontario), a tributary of ...
basins. This area covers southwestern
Wyoming
Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the sou ...
,
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...
east of long. 111° West (excluding the southeastern corner) and extreme west-central
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
.
The
type locality
Type locality may refer to:
* Type locality (biology)
* Type locality (geology)
See also
* Local (disambiguation)
* Locality (disambiguation)
{{disambiguation ...
given is "King's Ranch, Garfield Co., at the base of the Henry Mts
tah
TAH, Tah or tah may refer to:
* Taiwan Adventist Hospital, Taipei
* Total artificial heart
* Tahitian language ISO 639 code
* Whitegrass Airport, Tanna, Vanuatu, IATA code
* Jonathan Tah, German footballer
* Trans-African Highway network, Transc ...
"
Venom
This species possesses the most toxic venom of the ''
C. oreganus'' / ''
C. viridis'' group, although apparently considerable variability exists among local populations. It is even one of the most potent venoms found in North America, and according to studies, the venom is many times more potent than that of an Asiatic cobra. It is characterized by the presence of a presynaptic
neurotoxin
Neurotoxins are toxins that are destructive to nerve tissue (causing neurotoxicity). Neurotoxins are an extensive class of exogenous chemical neurological insultsSpencer 2000 that can adversely affect function in both developing and matur ...
, referred to as concolor toxin, the amount of which varies in individual snakes.
[Wetstein ''et al.'', 1985]
References
Further reading
* Hubbs, Brian, and Brendan O'Connor. 2012. ''A Guide to the Rattlesnakes and other Venomous Serpents of the United States''. Tricolor Books. Tempe, Arizona. 129 pp. . (''Crotalus oreganus concolor'', pp. 32–33.)
*
Woodbury, Angus M. 1929. A new rattlesnake from Utah. Bull. Univ. Utah 20 (1).
{{Taxonbar, from1=Q5188958, from2=Q98520179
concolor
Reptiles of the United States
Fauna of the Western United States