Crotalus scutulatus is known commonly as the Mohave Rattlesnake.[3][4] Other common English names include Mojave Rattlesnake[5][6] and, referring specifically to the nominate (northern) subspecies: Northern Mohave Rattlesnake[4] and Mojave Green Rattlesnake,[7][5] the latter name commonly shortened to the more colloquial “Mojave green”.[8] Campbell and Lamar (2004) supported the English name “Mohave (Mojave) rattlesnake” with some reluctance because so little of the snake’s range lies within the Mojave Desert.[6]
The spelling of the English name with an “h” has been advocated by multiple authors in recent years for various reasons.[8] The most recent iteration of standard English names for North American reptiles, endorsed by the major herpetological societies in the United States and Canada, concludes that spelling with either a “j” or an “h” is correct, based on “whether the word is used in a Spanish or English context.” Thus, their standard English names list adopted the “h” spelling.[4]
Two subspecies are currently recognized.[9] This account describes the widely distributed nominate subspecies, the Northern Mohave Rattlesnake, Crotalus scutulatus scutulatus.[4] The other subspecies, C. scutulatus salvini, occurs in a relatively small area deep in mainland Mexico.[10]
^ abStebbins, R.C. (2003). A Field Guide to Western Reptiles and Amphibians. Boston: Houghton Mifflin & Co. pp. 416-417. ISBN 0-395-98272-3
^ abCampbell JA, Lamar WW (2004). The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publishing Associates. 870 pp., 1,500 plates. ISBN0-8014-4141-2.
^Crother, BI; Boundy, J; Campbell, JA; de Queiroz, K; Frost, DR; Highton, R; Iverson, JB; Meylan, PA; Reeder, TW (2000). Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico, with Comments Regarding Confidence in Our Understanding (1st ed.). Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. p. 60. ISBN978-0916984540.
^ abCardwell, Mike (2020). The Mohave Rattlesnake and How It Became an Urban Legend. Rodeo, New Mexico: ECO Publishing. ISBN978-1-938850-30-1.