Snake ID please...

[WsW-WYATT-EARP]

Quick story - we were in vegas last week. Took a few day trips / mt. charleston / red rock canyon / spring mountain ranch / valley of fire / hoover dam. On our trip through Spring Mountain Ranch, we ran across this guy. I kept my distance since we didn't know what it was. After it finished crossing the road - my buddy, for some unknown reason, touched him. You see the results in the 3rd pic.

But if anyone knows what it is - please let me know.

Thanks

[Sushigaijin]

That's a gopher snake, pituophis catenifer ssp.

They are totally harmless, and fairly common. They also can be pretty large. Yours is a really nice example too.

Tell your buddy that he's pretty lucky, and the snake is pretty lucky too. Gopher snakes are among the handful of snakes that WILL bite readily, although again they are totally harmless. A bite from a snake, even if it's not venomous, all too often results in the death of the snake by car tire or shovel-assisted head removal.

Also, there are a LOT of rattlesnakes in that neck of the woods. They are probably the most common group of snakes in a lot of those areas. tread lightly, my friend. Striking distance is about one body length away - that's four to six feet on a large snake like a gopher, or diamondback rattlesnake. None of them are really prone to bite, but they will bite defensively, especially if they are harrassed (read, touched).

[WsW-WYATT-EARP]

Erik - thanks for the reply and info - we only followed this guy just off the road and then left him alone - I wasn't about to go far into the desert ... As I said I don't know what my buddy was thinking when he "harassed" the snake..... gave me a good shot though :thumbsup:

[paulnj]

that's a very cool snake. As a reptile breeder, I love all reptile images!