Wikieup
Arizona
May 2018
I read a report about Wikieup, Arizona. I quote the author. “Wikieup is famous for being the rattlesnake capitol of Arizona, but this fact is not advertised much …” To which I say, “If it’s not advertised much, then it’s not famous for being the rattlesnake capitol of Arizona.”
Wikieup however, may not be famous, but it has been proclaimed. Randy Babb, a biologist with the Arizona Game and Fish Department, did the proclaiming and what he proclaimed is that Wikieup is the Rattlesnake Capital of the World. Certainly more grand than the Rattlesnake Capitol of Arizona.
Sweetwater, Texas too has been proclaimed, but not what Wikieup has been proclaimed. Sweetwater hosts the world’s largest rattlesnake roundup. Clearly there is a difference between Rattlesnake Capital of the World and the place that holds the largest rattlesnake roundup in the world. Besides, the only source I was able to find calling Arizona the Rattlesnake Capital of the World was Randy Babb. Maybe it is. Certainly it is in Randy’s mind.
Randy Babb also said, “The cardinal rule in Arizona is to watch where you put your hands and feet.” Wise advice in any circumstance.
These snakes, which I discovered in Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, match the photographs in my snake book. The description however, describes them as living in the southwestern United States. It calls them Crotalus cerberus and says they are a venomous pit viper species, commonly known as the Arizona black rattlesnake.
As it turns out, we weren’t in Arizona, nor were we in the Rattlesnake Capitol of Arizona. But it’s the right snake!