Austin Stevens with a rare tzabcan rattlesnake in Yucatan, Mexico.
November 4, 2015
Last week I communicated back and forth with Austin Stevens, renown wildlife television host and author of Austin Stevens Snakemaster: Wildlife Adventures with the World’s Most Dangerous Reptiles.
In the dialogue for an upcoming magazine feature came information on what is likely the world’s rarest snake.
“A critically endangered rattlesnake species is the Aruba Island rattlesnake (Crotalus durissus unicolor) off the coast of Venezuela. A small pastel-colored snake from the interior of Aruba Island, this snake has in recent years been the subject of a coordinated zoo captive breeding and reintroduction program,” Stevens said.
Austin Stevens with a rare tzabcan rattlesnake in Yucatan, Mexico.
“But probably rarest of all the rattlesnakes is the Autlan rattlesnake/the long-tailed rattlesnake,(Crotalus lannomi) of which just one road-killed specimen was originally found in western Mexico, in 1966.”
Mysterious mammals are spoken of frequently but the hidden snakes of the planet get little credit.
Have you ever had an encounter with a rare snake or other reptile? If so, tell us about it.
Chester Moore, Jr.
About Chester Moore
Chester Moore is Editor-In-Chief of Texas Fish & Game magazine. He has won more than 100 awards for writing, photography and conservation and was named a “Hero of Conservation” by Field & Stream magazine. He has 12 published books including has published thousands of articles on wildlife since 1992 including many on the subject of mysterious animals. Chester has appeared on The 700 Club, Animal Planet, The Outdoors Channel, National Geographic and NBC Sports. He is host of “Moore Outdoors” on Newstalk AM 560 KLVI where he has broadcasted for 16 years. He and his wife Lisa founded Children's Kingdom Ministries and operate the Kingdom Zoo: Wildlife Center in Pinehurst, TX in the Orange area.
Filed under Cryptozoologists, Cryptozoology, Giant Cryptid Reptiles, Kingdom Zoo, Weird Animal News