Rattlers mating, active

By Robert Sloan For Lone Star outdoor newS

When he’s not working as a fishing guide out of Port Mansfield, Jordan Caballero manages a South Texas ranch, and over the past couple of weeks has been dealing with some rather large rattlers. The biggest one so far, that he has killed, was 6 feet, 3 inches long.

“They are mating right now and are on the move,” Caballero said. “We saw this particular rattler cross one of the ranch roads. Usually they are pretty fast, but lately they have not been too quick to get out of the way.”

A diamondback rattlesnake is one of the most feared reptiles in Texas. And they are occasionally encountered by bird hunters after dove, quail and turkey.

“The ranch I manage is in Willacy County, just south of Port Mansfield,” Caballero said. “I think the reason they are moving so slow now is because of the rain we’ve had lately and the fact that they are mating. We’ve only had one person get hit on this ranch. He was weed-eating around the house and got hit on the foot by one that was about 3 feet long. Fortunately the fangs did not penetrate the leather boot.”

Carlos Fernandez manages his family