Greene, H. 1992 March 7 Portal, Cochise Co., Arizona Drove down w/ David Hardy, arriving ~0900h, having flown to Tucson from Seattle yesterday. Flying in I could see water shining like mirrors in the afternoon sun down in the washes. Today was beautiful in the Chiricahuas Mtns. until late afternoon when large silver and dark clouds rolled in from the west and we got a little rain ~1700h. This AM we located 2 of our 4 radiotagged blacktailed rattlesnakes in our study site on Paradise Rd. At ~1035h we found Crotalus molossus male #9 in a deep arroyo at the east end of the area, perhaps 500m N of the road. The snake was in a boulder jumble, protected from the wind by the close-in canyon walls, coiled under a ledge facing SE - most of snake was in shade under edge of rock, but a possible food lump was stuck out in sun (scales visibly stretched for ~15-20cm - see photos). Only response to us was slow sweeping tongue flicks. Shaded air temp. at ~1m was ~17°C, in dirt in sun ~50 an out from the C. molossus was ~24°C. At ~1130h we found the signal of C. molossus male #3 in the cave where last year I found #6's signal; also could get strong signal at a precise spot on the ground above the cave and 4-5m back from lip of the overhang. I collected a clean string of snake vertebrae on top the "nive" of Nestora dung.