CROCODILIANS, LIZARDS, AND SNAKES. 

 Crotalus confluentus conJluentu8 Say — Continued. 



1173 



Catalogue ^J^I^'^^y 

 I mens. 



9519 

 9958 



11729 



284 



9094 



8564 



5021 

 11765 

 11781 

 11565 

 8755 

 4232 

 9318 

 4618 

 1293 



4962 

 16351 



16352 



22274 



22321 



22724-27 



22729 



22730-31 



Locality. 



Pyramid Lake, Nevada . . 

 Sydney, Nebraska 



Camp "12," Nevada 



Fort Union, New Mexico 

 (?) 



Los Coronados Island, 



Lower California. 

 Fort KiKliiiiiMii, Arizona . 



Fresuo. California 



do 



When 

 collected. 



May 27,1877 

 Feb. 10,1876 



Jnlv —1867 



"■^roni whom received. 



H. "W. Henshaw 



Lieut. E. Crawford, U. 



S. A. 

 Robert Ridgway 



T. H. Streets 



Truckee River. Nevada. .. 



San Mateo, Arizona 



Near 32° latitude 



Yellowstone lii vit 



Fort Kearney 



Wagon road to Bridgers 



Pass, Wyoming. 



Pecos River, Texas 



Near Orcutt, San Diego 



County, California. 

 Mountain, San Diego 



County, California. 

 Banner,' Trego County, 



Kansas. 

 Banner, Trego County, 



Kansas. 



July — , 1867 

 Oct.- — , 1875 



July 



1873 



Trego County, Kansas . 



Dr. J. B. D. Irvin 



G. Eisen 



do 



Robert Ridgway 



H.W. Henshaw 



Cajit. John Pope,U. S. A. 



Prof J. A. Allen 



C. McCarthy 



W.S.Wood 



Capt. John Pope,U. S. A . 

 C.R. Orcutt 



do. 



National Zoological Park 

 ....do 



do- 

 .do. 

 -do. 



Nature of 

 specimen. 



Alcoholic, 

 do. 



do. 

 do. 

 do. 

 do. 



do. 

 do. 

 do. 

 do. 

 do. 

 do. 

 do. 

 do. 

 do. 



do. 

 do. 



do. 



do. 



do. 



do. 

 do. 

 do. 



This rattlesnake is a universal companion of tlie prairie marmot, 

 Cynomys ludovicianns. I have observed them together from near the 

 Oanatlian border in Montana to the southern extremity of the staked 

 plains in central western Texas. Not only do the marmots provide 

 them food, but their burrows furnish them a safe refuge. In some 

 regions the wild rat Neotonia does the same service. 1 well remember 

 a large Crotalus which dwelt in apparent harmony with a rat and her 

 lamily near a camp north of Clarendon, in the Panhandle of Texas. 

 Both the snake and the rat were fat, but no young rats were in sight. 



This is the familiar rattlesnake of the plains. They are frequently 

 found near the camp of the traveler, and, like others of their genus, 

 intlict no injury unless provoked or hurt. The bite is, however, fre- 

 quently fatal if fairly delivered. When the head is raised in the act 

 of attack the light strii)es of the muzzle and lips present a handsome 

 appearance. 



Dr. H. A. Brous gives his experience of the relations between the 

 rattlesnake, jirairie marmot, and the prairie owls in the following 

 language:' 



Prairie dogs (Ciinomiis htdovicianus) seoin to have a most inteii.so dread of rattle- 

 snakes {Crotaltifi conlhunius). This little animal dreads not only its venomous bite, 

 but more the loss of its young, which serve as food for these snakes that enter their 

 burrows, take i)os8es8ion, and drive them from their homes. Where does one iind a 

 prairie-dog town but that it is teeming with snakes and the strange little owl 

 {Speotyto cuiipnilaria) that "ducks" to passers in ludicrous solemnity? These do 



I American Naturalist, XVI, 1882, p. 565. 



