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Western Massasauga

Sistrurus catenatus

Description:

The adults are not large, ranging from 60 to 75 cm (24 to 30 in) in length.[5] The color pattern consists of a grey or tan ground color with a row of large rounded brown/black blotches or spots down the center of the back and three smaller rows of alternating spots down each side. Solid black melanistic examples are also known, as well as cases where the back blotches join with those on the sides. Young massasauga are well-patterned but paler than the adults. This is the only Ontario snake with vertical pupils.[citation needed] It has heat-sensing pits on each side of its smallish head, the scales are keeled and the anal scale is single.

1 Species ID Suggestions

AshleyT
AshleyT 9 years ago
Massasauga
Sistrurus catenatus Greenwood County


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3 Comments

Ajwerko
Ajwerko 9 years ago

Thank you JoshuaGSmith and AshleyT for the ID and nice comments.

JoshuaGSmith
JoshuaGSmith 9 years ago

What a beauty!

AshleyT
AshleyT 9 years ago

Nice find! This is a snake lots of reptile lovers look very hard to try and find :)

Ajwerko
Spotted by
Ajwerko

Great Bend, Kansas, USA

Spotted on Mar 28, 2015
Submitted on Apr 1, 2015

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