Desert Nightsnake vs. Western Rattlesnake
The Nightsnake is often taken for a young rattlesnake: both are pale with dark blotches and both have a vertical pupil. A: the rattlesnake has a rattle (a single button on a newborn); the Nightsnake's tail just tapers to a point. B: the rattlesnake's head is broad and triangular, much wider than the neck, with a heat pit between eye and nostril; the Nightsnake's head is flat and only a little wider than the neck, with no pit. The Nightsnake has smooth scales; the rattlesnake's are keeled. The Western Rattlesnake is venomous: observe from a distance. The Nightsnake is harmless to people.
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