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Northern Pacific Rattlesnake

Northern Pacific Rattlesnake line art illustration (click image to enlarge)

Northern Pacific Rattlesnake illustration (click image to enlarge)

Artist's notes:

The Northern Pacific Rattlesnake was completed on 12.18.09. I ran into several of these snakes on a rafting trip in NE Oregon, then once when hiking on Mount Diablo in the East Bay. Snakes can be tricky with the scale patterns that follow the contour of the body. The drawing is based on a photo by Bill Bouton.

Information about the Northern Pacific Rattlesnake:

The Northern Pacific Rattlesnake, also called the Hopi Rattlesnake, is a heavy bodied species of pitviper found in the Western United Snakes, mostly in Oregon and California. Like all rattlesnakes when alarmed, a Northern Pacific Rattlesnake shakes its tail back and forth rattling it's tail. This reptile eats birds, lizards, snakes, frogs, insects, and small mammals. It is mostly nocturnal, although when the temperature allows they will be active during the day. While the snake is venomous, bites to humans are uncommon and fatalities are rare.