Crotalus

Crotalus is a genus of venomous pit vipers found only in the Americas from southern Canada to northern Argentina. The name comes from the Greek word krotalon, which means "rattle", referring to the rattle on the end of the tail. There are currently 29 species recognized.

Description
Members of this genus range in size from only 50–60 cm to over 150 cm. Adult males are slightly larger than females. Compared to most snakes they are heavy-bodied, although some African vipers are much thicker. They are recognized by the rattle on their tail though some species do not have tails.

Feeding
Small species eat mainly lizards, while larger species first eat lizards when young, then start eating mammals when they become adults, like rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks, gophers, rats and mice, some also eat birds, other snakes and amphibians.

Predators
Humans are a threat to Crotalus, but other snakes like the Kingsnake, the Coachwhip, the Indigo Snake and the Racer are also threats. Birds like the hawk, the eagle, the owl, the raven and the roadrunner, and mammals like the coyote, the fox, the wildcat, the badger and the skunk are also threats.

Venom
Almost all Crotalus venoms are hemotoxic, meaning that the venom destroys red blood cells, stops blood clotting,and damages tissue. Hemotoxic is very painful, and people who are bitten by a snake with hemotoxic do not always make a full recovery. Some species like Crotalus Scutalatus and Crotalus Tigris have a nuerotoxic venom, while neurotoxins are less painful they kill more quicker. Neurotoxins are also found in the venom of Cobras and mambas. The eastern diamondback rattlesnake (Crotalus Adamanteus) in some parts of its range may have a nuerotoxin in their venom as well as a hemotoxins.

Species
 Eastern diamondback rattlesnake, C. adamanteus
 Querétaro dusky rattlesnake, C. aquilus
 Western Diamondback Rattlesnake, C. atrox
 Mexican west coast rattlesnake, C. basiliscus
 Santa Catalina rattlesnake, C. catalinensis
 Sidewinder, C. cerastes
 Cascabel, C. durissus 
 Great Basin rattlesnake,   C.   lutosus 
 Hopi rattlesnake,  C.  nuntius 
 Yellow rattlesnake,   C.  concolor 
 Grand Cayon rattlesnake,   C.  abyssus 
 Southern Pacific rattlesnake,   C.  helleri 
 Desert rattlesnake,   C.  dahli 
 Brazilian rattlesnake,  C.  terrificus 
 Aruba Island rattlesnake,   C.  unicolor 
 South American rattlesnake,   C.   cumanensis 
 Black spotted rattlesnake,   C. vegrandis
 Baja California rattlesnake, C. enyo
 Timber rattlesnake, C. horridus
 Mexican small-headed rattlesnake, C. intermedius
 Autlán rattlesnake, C. lannomi
 Banded  rattlesnake, C. lepidus
 Speckled rattlesnake, C. mitchellii
 Black-tailed rattlesnake, C. molossus
 Northern Pacific  rattlesnake, C. oreganus
 Mexican lance-headed rattlesnake, C. polystictus
 Twin-spotted rattlesnake, C. pricei
 Tancitaran dusky rattlesnake, C. pusillus
 Red diamondback  rattlesnake, C. ruber
 Mohave rattlesnake, C. scutulatus
 Neotropical rattlesnake, C. simus
 Long-tailed rattlesnake, C. stejnegeri
 Tiger rattlesnake, C. tigris
 Tortuga island diamondback  rattlesnake, C. tortugensis
 Totonacan rattlesnake, C. totonacus
 Cross-banded mountain rattlesnake, C. transversus
 Mexican  rattlesnake, C. triseriatus
 Prairie rattlesnake, C. viridis
 Ridge-nosed rattlesnake, C. willardi

References

Category:Vipers