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Aruba Island Rattlesnake


Aruba Island Rattlesnake
Photo Information
Copyright: Alli Hemingway (annagrace) Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 545 W: 17 N: 853] (2992)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2006-01-16
Categories: Reptiles
Exposure: f/2.8, 1/4 seconds
More Photo Info: [view]
Photo Version: Original Version
Date Submitted: 2006-01-16 15:38
Viewed: 1088
Favorites: 1 [view]
Points: 22
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
I took this photo at Zoo Atlanta today of this Aruba Island rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus unicolor). It was shot through glass so isn't as sharp as I would have liked.

Classification and Range
The Aruba Island rattlesnake belongs to the family of vipers, Viperidae. Pit vipers together form the subfamily Crotalinae. The “pit vipers” are so-called because they have heat-sensing pits behind and below their nares (nostrils). You can see them here in this photo. Besides rattlesnakes, some other kinds of pit vipers are water moccasins (also known as cottonmouths), copperheads, palm vipers and bushmasters.

The Aruba Island rattlesnake (C. d. unicolor) is a subspecies of the Neotropical rattlesnake (C. durissus), which ranges from Mexico to Argentina.

Habitat
Aruba Island rattlesnakes (hereafter simply referred as “Arubas”) are only found on the desert island of Aruba, located off the coast of Venezuela. The total amount of habitat for the snakes is only 12 square miles (31 sq km) of the island’s dry interior; vegetation there is very sparse.

Length and Weight
The maximum size for Arubas is 37 inches (94 cm). A typical adult specimen weighs 2-3 pounds (0.9-1.4 kg). Males tend to be larger than females.

Life Span
12-25 years (estimated)

Diet
In the wild: Probably rodents, lizards and birds.

Life Cycle
Newborn Arubas are only a few inches long and weigh about half an ounce (14 g). Young snakes are independent from birth. A few days after they birth, the young shed their skins for the the first time and begin looking for food. During their first year of life, young Arubas can grow to 6-9 inches (15-23 cm) in length.

Death by Lethal Injection
Like other rattlesnakes, Arubas inject their prey with a lethal cocktail of enzymes and other complex chemicals that both kill the animal and actually begin to digest it from the inside out. Long-hinged fangs, which are usually folded back so that the mouth can be closed, swing forward as the snake strikes out at its prey. In spite of darkness, the snake may locate and identify its prey by using its heat-sensing pits. The snake then swallows its prey whole, as other snakes do. A snake swallows its prey whole by unhinging its jaw at the pivots (if necessary) and allowing the flexible lower jaw (called the symphysis) to stretch enough so the snake can engulf its dinner. In the wild, an adult Aruba might only eat a few times a year, and a well-fed specimen could probably go for a year or more without food.
http://www.zoo.org/educate/fact_sheets/day/aruba.htm
sAner, dew77, scottevers7, liquidsunshine has marked this note useful
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Discussions
ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To magiqa: Hi Monica!annagrace 1 01-22 16:59
To sAner: Hello my Dutch friend!annagrace 4 01-17 22:28
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Critiques [Translate]

  • Great 
  • mbasil Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 352 W: 148 N: 716] (3130)
  • [2006-01-16 16:42]

Amazing shot! Just the right DOF to show the texture, too!

  • Great 
  • sAner Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1648 W: 79 N: 1438] (4742)
  • [2006-01-16 16:49]
  • [+]

Nice shot Ali! Focus is a little soft, but the picture is still very nice. TFS!

Regards,
Pieter

  • Great 
  • dew77 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 5171 W: 297 N: 4050] (13069)
  • [2006-01-17 3:51]

Hello Alli!
Wonderful close up.POV,lighting,
clear eyes,framing and composition
are excellent.TFS...:-)

wow,
great macro, details and composition!
Ana:)

Hi Alli,
I love the fram filling composition of this shot. Exposure looks to be spot on, rendering excellent colors. Detail is good, and you can just feel the texture in this shot. Nice work!
Scott

Very nice close up of this cool rattlesnake very nicely compose, only nit is that it appears soft, smaller aperature would fix that next time. Still a nice shot Alli. :)

  • Great 
  • Callie Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1243 W: 106 N: 2606] (7501)
  • [2006-01-17 12:58]

Hi Alli
Recognised this guy's ugly mug on the thumbnail before I ead the title,just love snakes, but basically never get the chance to shoot them. Beautiful mugshot, but you should try F8 if it is a DSRL or max if it is a point and shoot. The eye is beautiful in focus, but the nose a bit soft - that is the f2.8 at work.

Hi Alli,
Good detail, colours and sharpness.
Composition and exposure are good. Good POV and framing.
Thanks for posting, Have a great week.

Are there rattlesnakes in Aruba? I did not know! Otherwise I would not have dared walking around there,,,
nice and sharp picture of a dangerous animal, here looking rather cute.

Alli,
Wonderful post here. Great notes. Real complete.
The DOF is nice and I see you caught "catch light" in the eyes. Shooting through glass is tough but a whole lot easier than sticking your face into the glass box! Great job!
Scott

  • Great 
  • puciu Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Note Writer [C: 519 W: 0 N: 16] (2603)
  • [2006-02-10 9:15]

Fajna fotka, bardzo ładny kadr. Dobre kolory i ostro¶ć.

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