The 10 States With the Most Rattlesnakes
Rattlesnakes live in almost every state. These ten have the most kinds, the most snakes or both, and each one has its own rules for staying out of trouble.
Rattlesnakes are found only in the Americas. There are more than thirty species, and the greatest variety lives in the deserts and mountains of the American Southwest and northern Mexico. Nearly every one of the lower 48 states has at least one species. Alaska, Hawaii and Maine have none.
No agency counts individual snakes, so no one can say which state holds the most animals. What can be measured is the number of species in each state, how much of the state they occupy, and how often people run into them. This ranking leans on all three.
A word about risk before the list begins. Venomous snakes bite roughly seven to eight thousand people in the United States each year, and about five die. Rattlesnakes cause most of the serious cases. Bites happen mainly between April and October, and a large share involve someone who saw the snake and chose to handle, move or kill it.
The safe response is the same in every state: stop, find the snake, and step back. A rattlesnake can strike about half its body length, so a few steps put you out of reach.
Read all the way to the end, where we cover what to do when you meet one.
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1. Arizona
Seen one here?Arizona is the rattlesnake capital of the United States, with thirteen species, more than any other state. The western diamondback is the one most people meet. It shares the state with the Mojave rattlesnake, the sidewinder, the black-tailed, tiger and speckled rattlesnakes, the Arizona black rattlesnake, the Grand Canyon rattlesnake and several small mountain species.
Three of those, the ridge-nosed, twin-spotted and rock rattlesnakes, live in the "sky island" ranges of the southeast, such as the Huachuca and Chiricahua mountains. The ridge-nosed rattlesnake is the official state reptile, and these small mountain species are protected by law.
AdvertisementSnakes are active from March through October. In spring they move by day. Once the summer heat arrives they shift to dusk and night, and the monsoon rains of July through September bring a second surge of activity along with the year's newborns.
Arizona's poison centers handle a few hundred rattlesnake bites in a typical year. Many happen in ordinary yards, garages and golf courses on the edges of Phoenix, Scottsdale and Tucson, where new neighborhoods press into desert.
AdvertisementIn the Sonoran Desert, the rattlesnake is not a wilderness animal. It is a neighbor.
Where they areStatewide, from desert suburbs below 2,000 feet to pine forest above 8,000. Use a flashlight for every evening walk, even to the mailbox. -
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2. Texas
Seen one here?Texas has about ten kinds of rattlesnake, counting species and distinct subspecies. The western diamondback is by far the most common and causes most of the state's serious bites. It lives across the western two-thirds of the state, from the Panhandle to the Rio Grande.
AdvertisementThe timber rattlesnake, called the canebrake in the South, lives in the wooded bottomlands of east Texas and is protected by the state. The prairie rattlesnake occupies the western plains. The Mojave, black-tailed and rock rattlesnakes are snakes of the Trans-Pecos and Big Bend. Two massasaugas live in grasslands, and the little western pygmy rattlesnake lives in the east and along the upper coast.
The season runs from March through October in most of the state, and almost year-round in the mild south. Diamondbacks gather in rocky dens over winter and spread out in spring, which is when ranchers, hunters and hikers see the most snakes.
AdvertisementBites happen most often to people working outdoors: clearing brush, moving hay, reaching under equipment or stepping out of a truck at night. Thick leather boots and a habit of looking first prevent most of them.
Where they areHeaviest in the South Texas brush country, the Edwards Plateau and Hill Country, and the rocky ranges of west Texas. -
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3. New Mexico
Seen one here?New Mexico has seven or eight species, depending on how the Arizona black rattlesnake of the western border is counted. The western diamondback and the prairie rattlesnake are the common ones. The diamondback dominates the southern deserts and river valleys, while the prairie rattlesnake covers the eastern plains and the northern plateau.
AdvertisementThe black-tailed rattlesnake lives in rocky canyons and mountain slopes in the south and west. The Mojave rattlesnake reaches the far southwest corner. The rock rattlesnake, a small gray snake that matches the limestone it lives on, is found in the southern ranges. The desert massasauga keeps to grassland.
The rarest is the New Mexico ridge-nosed rattlesnake, a small snake found in the United States only in the Animas and Peloncillo mountains of the state's bootheel. It is listed as a threatened species under federal law, and it is illegal to collect or disturb it.
AdvertisementActivity runs from April through October, with a peak during the summer rains. Hikers on the foothill trails around Albuquerque, Las Cruces and Carlsbad meet snakes regularly, usually at the trail edge in early morning or evening.
Where they areDesert grassland, rocky canyons and mountain foothills, mostly below about 8,000 feet. Step onto rocks and logs, never blindly over them. -
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4. California
Seen one here?California has seven species. The western rattlesnake, in its northern Pacific and southern Pacific forms, is the most widespread and the one responsible for most bites. It lives from the coast to the Sierra Nevada foothills and north to the Oregon line, in grassland, oak woodland, chaparral and rocky streamsides.
AdvertisementThe other species are desert and southern snakes. The sidewinder and the Mojave rattlesnake live in the Mojave and Colorado deserts. The western diamondback reaches the far southeast. The red diamond rattlesnake lives in the coastal and desert slopes of the southwest corner, and the speckled and Panamint rattlesnakes keep to rocky desert ranges.
Most bites happen between April and October, when both snakes and people are outdoors. California's poison control system handles several hundred rattlesnake bites a year. Deaths are rare.
AdvertisementThe southern Pacific rattlesnake deserves a special mention. It is common in the hills around Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego, it turns up on busy trails and in hillside gardens, and its bites can be severe.
Where they areFrom the southern deserts to the coastal hills, the Central Valley edges and the Sierra foothills. The only places reliably free of them are the high mountains and the wettest northwest coast. -
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5. Nevada
Seen one here?Nevada has six species, and five of them live in the southern tip of the state around Las Vegas. The sidewinder is the snake of sandy flats and dunes, where it leaves its unmistakable J-shaped tracks. The Mojave rattlesnake lives on open creosote flats. The speckled rattlesnake keeps to boulder slopes, and the Panamint rattlesnake lives in the desert ranges to the west. The western diamondback reaches only the extreme south, along the Colorado River.
AdvertisementThe sixth species, the Great Basin rattlesnake, has most of the state to itself. It lives across central and northern Nevada in sagebrush, rocky hills and canyon rims, and it is the snake that hikers meet around Reno, Elko and Great Basin National Park.
In the south the season starts in March and runs into October, with snakes turning nocturnal in summer. In the cooler north it runs from about May through September.
AdvertisementBites are not common, because much of Nevada is empty country. They occur around Red Rock Canyon, Lake Mead and the desert edges of the Las Vegas valley, often to people scrambling on rock with their hands.
Where they areRocky slopes and desert valleys statewide. In canyon country, look at every handhold before you use it. -
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6. Utah
Seen one here?Utah has five species by the usual count, with several forms of the western rattlesnake making up most of the state's snakes. The Great Basin rattlesnake lives throughout the western half, including the foothills above Salt Lake City, Ogden and Provo. The midget faded rattlesnake, a small, pale snake with strong venom, lives in the canyons of the east. The Hopi rattlesnake lives in the southeast near the Four Corners.
AdvertisementThe remaining species are Mojave Desert snakes that enter only the far southwest corner near St. George: the sidewinder, the Mojave rattlesnake and the speckled rattlesnake.
Utah's snakes spend the winter in communal rock dens and emerge in April. They are most visible in May and June and again in September, when they travel back to the dens. Hikers, trail runners and mountain bikers on the Bonneville Shoreline Trail see them every year.
AdvertisementRattlesnakes are protected under Utah law. It is illegal to harass or kill one unless it poses an immediate threat to a person, and attempts to kill them are a leading cause of bites.
Where they areThe foothills of the Wasatch Front, the west desert, and the red-rock canyon country of the south and east, mostly below 9,000 feet. -
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7. Colorado
Seen one here?Colorado has only three species, but one of them is abundant. The prairie rattlesnake lives across the eastern plains, along the Front Range foothills and in the canyons and mesas of the west. It is found almost anywhere below about 9,000 feet where there are rodents and rock.
AdvertisementThe other two are small and local. The midget faded rattlesnake lives in the far west, in the canyon country of the Colorado and Green river drainages. The massasauga lives in the dry grasslands of the southeast.
The season is short. Snakes leave their dens in April, are most active from May through September, and are back underground by late October. On cool mornings they bask on trails, rock ledges and paved bike paths, which is when most encounters happen.
AdvertisementPrairie rattlesnakes live in prairie dog towns, where they shelter in the burrows. They are common on the open-space trails of Boulder, Jefferson and Larimer counties, and bites to hikers and to dogs are reported every summer.
A snake stretched across a sunny trail is not blocking your way. It is warming up, and it will move if you wait.
Where they areBelow about 9,000 feet, especially on foothill open-space trails near Denver, Boulder, Golden and Fort Collins. Keep dogs leashed and on the trail.Advertisement -
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8. Florida
Seen one here?Florida has three species. The eastern diamondback is the largest rattlesnake in the world and the heaviest venomous snake in the Americas. Adults are commonly three to six feet long, and exceptional animals approach eight feet. It lives throughout the state, including some of the Keys, in pine flatwoods, palmetto thickets, coastal dunes and barrier islands.
The timber rattlesnake, known locally as the canebrake, lives only in north Florida, in river bottoms and damp hardwood forest across a band of northern counties.
AdvertisementThe dusky pygmy rattlesnake is the one Floridians meet most often. It is a small gray snake, one to two feet long, with dark blotches and a rusty stripe down the back. Its tiny rattle makes a faint buzz like an insect. It lives statewide in flatwoods, around ponds and in suburban yards, and it causes more bites than the other two species together. Its bite is painful but very rarely life-threatening.
Florida's warmth keeps snakes active in every month, with the most movement in spring and fall. Diamondbacks often shelter in gopher tortoise burrows and stump holes, so never reach into either.
AdvertisementWhere they arePine flatwoods, palmetto scrub, hammock edges and barrier islands statewide. Pygmy rattlesnakes hide in leaf litter and mulch, so wear gloves and closed shoes for yard work. -
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9. Georgia
Seen one here?Georgia has the same three species as Florida, arranged differently. The timber rattlesnake is the most widespread. It lives on the rocky ridges of the north Georgia mountains, through the Piedmont woodlands, and in the swamps and river bottoms of the Coastal Plain, where it is called the canebrake.
AdvertisementThe eastern diamondback lives only in the southern half of the state, below the fall line that runs through Columbus, Macon and Augusta. It favors longleaf pine and wiregrass country, sandhills and the coastal islands, and it depends on gopher tortoise burrows for winter shelter. Its numbers have fallen as that habitat has been lost.
Pygmy rattlesnakes live across most of the state except the far north. They are small, quick to strike when touched, and easy to miss among pine needles.
The season runs from March into November. Timber rattlesnakes are ambush hunters that lie coiled beside fallen logs for days, so most bites to hikers and hunters happen when a foot comes down right next to an unseen snake.
AdvertisementWhere they areCoastal Plain pinelands, river swamps and barrier islands in the south, and wooded ridges in the north. Georgia law protects nonvenomous snakes, so killing a snake you cannot identify can be a crime. -
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10. Oklahoma
Seen one here?Oklahoma has five species, an unusually rich mix for a plains state, because eastern forest and western desert snakes meet here. The western diamondback is the best known. It is common in the rocky hills, gypsum canyons and mesquite pastures of the western and southern parts of the state, and it reaches large sizes in the Wichita Mountains.
AdvertisementThe prairie rattlesnake lives in the shortgrass plains of the far west and the Panhandle. The timber rattlesnake lives in the forested hills of the east, including the Ouachitas and the Ozark edge. The western massasauga lives in prairie across the central part of the state, and the western pygmy rattlesnake lives in the wooded east and south.
Snakes emerge from winter dens in late March and April, and that is when they are most concentrated and most visible. Activity continues through October.
AdvertisementFarm and ranch work accounts for many bites: lifting hay bales, moving boards and sheet metal, and reaching into feed sheds. Hunters in the fall should wear snake boots or gaiters in the western hills.
Where they areRocky hills, canyons and prairie in the west and south, and forested ridges in the east. Never put a hand under anything you have not looked beneath first.
The short version
Rattlesnakes want to be left alone, and they tell you so. In all ten of these states the same habits keep people safe. Stay on open trails. Watch where you put your hands and feet. Wear boots and long pants in brush. Carry a light after dark. Keep dogs leashed. If you hear a rattle, stop, find the snake, and step away from it. Do not try to kill it or move it.
If a bite happens, stay calm and move away from the snake. Remove rings, watches and anything tight. Keep the bitten limb still and at about heart level. Call 911, or Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222, and get to an emergency department. Do not cut the wound, apply suction, use ice or tie a tourniquet.
Antivenom is the treatment, and it works best when it is given early. With prompt hospital care, the great majority of people bitten by rattlesnakes recover fully.
Last updated . This article is for general information. Wild animals are unpredictable, so follow local wildlife and park guidance.
