Was out on my after dinner bike ride and I ran into another exerciser out on the community bike path.
I see rattlers as well as several types of non-poisonious snakes fairly frequently here in Tucson. I live just a quarter mile from the Saguaro National park boundary. The snakes go up hill into the park for winter and come down across the subdivision in the spring moving to the Santa Cruz river which is about 1/2 mile the other direct. I sort of live on a snake migration route.
I see a snake or two a week during the spring through fall season, almost always at night and away from the housing area. Most people here don't see them that often because they don't venture out away from the neighborhoods at night. I like the cooler temperature after dinner for a spin on the bike and there is a paved bike path that parallels the river. I have a really bright light set up on my bike, so I'm never surprised when I run across a snake.
The rattlers I've seen here in Tucson have never been aggressive. There are several different types of Rattler here. When I was a kid I use to see pygmy rattlers in Eastern Washington state while out bird hunting, and those little dudes are mean. I've never killed a rattler here in Tucson, I leave them to their rat killing. I used to kill every pygmy rattler I ran across as a kid though, they were somewhat dangerous.
