This is a Black Tailed Rattlesnake that showed up in our driveway at dusk. This species of snake is not too common in general, but we see them pretty often here in this area. It can be found from west Texas to eastern California and tends to be grayish throughout much of that range. In southern Arizona, though, it tends to be a bright yellow, but since this picture was taken with a flash that didn't come through very clearly. I found some information on the internet that said they typically lie in ambush waiting for prey to pass by, sometimes staying in the same spot for several weeks. This particular snake was just over three feet long and eventually crawled off into a yucca plant once we left it alone.
We found this little fellow wandering across the road nearby. It's shell was about 6 inches long. By looking at pictures and other info on the internet we thought it might be a Berlandier's Tortoise, but Jerry Feldner of the Arizona Herpatological Association told us it was an Desert Box Turtle, quite an old male according to Jerry. I don't claim to know the difference (turtle versus tortoise, not male versus female), but hopefully it found whatever it was looking for.
