Sistrurus catenatus

Massassauga ( Sistrurus catenatus )

The Massassauga ( Sistrurus catenatus ) is a species of dwarf rattlesnakes ( Sistrurus ), which is used in a wide strip across the central United States of America from southern Ontario, Canada, up in northern Mexico.

Features

The Massassauga reached an average body length of about 50 centimeters and is rarely up to a meter long, which it is the largest species of dwarf rattlesnakes and also larger than many Mexican rattlesnake ( Crotalus genus ). The basic color of the snake is usually brown or gray with a drawing of easily recognizable dark or maroon spots on the back. On the neck there is a conspicuous spot pair and on her head a temple strap runs from the snout through the eye to the mouth. Especially in the north of the area of ​​distribution melanistic individuals may occur with a high proportion of black pigments.

Distribution and habitat

The Massassauga is used in a wide strip across the central United States of America from southern Ontario, Canada, to the north in Mexico, southeastern Arizona, and Texas. In Mexico, there are also two isolated populations in the states of Nuevo Leon and Coahuila.

As a habitat a number used different habitats. In the north the species prefers mainly swampy forest areas while it is mainly found in the southern part of the range in the grasslands.

System

The Massassauga is currently split into three subspecies:

• S. c. catenatus or Eastern Massassauga in the northeastern part of the range; it lives mainly in swamp forests and is often dyed darker than the other subspecies
• S. c. edwardsi in the southern areas of its range, including Mexico; it is smaller than the other types and lives in dry areas
• S. c. tergeminus or Western Massassauga in the western part of the range in the central United States and south to Texas and the Gulf of Mexico.

Snake venom

The venom of rattlesnakes dwarf corresponds in its basic composition of the rattlesnakes and is like most viper venoms hemotoxic, so it destroys blood cells and the walls of blood vessels. Hämotoxine lead mainly to destruction of tissue, internal bleeding and swelling and are very painful, compared to most neurotoxins kill but less quickly. In contrast to the venoms of rattlesnakes which the dwarf rattlesnakes are far less well researched. The Massassauga produces only relatively small amounts of poison, the effects usually consist of local swelling, pain, and general nausea.