By
March 6, 2026 / 5:29 PM PST / CBS LA
The recent warm weather has kicked off Orange County's rattlesnake season a little earlier this year.
Trail runner Greg Hardesty yielded for a big red diamond rattlesnake on an Orange County path on Wednesday.
"Yeah, he stopped me in my tracks," Hardesty said. "Thank you for going. I was going to turn around. That would have added some miles."
A day after Hardesty's encounter, the Mission Viejo Animal Services answered a handful of calls about rattlers on private property. One slithered into a backyard, under a patio chair, and another was found stretched out across the warm cement sidewalk leading into Matt Davis Park.
"Yeah, the gardeners call this park, 'Rattlesnake Park' a lot," landscaper Mauricio Navarro said. "Sometimes we see two or three a day."
Navarro said they typically see the snakes in the summertime. However, the recent warm weather brought the rattlesnakes out earlier than last year, according to Animal Services Manager Kyle Werner.
"Yesterday, we received four calls," Werner said. "One turned out to be a lizard, so that call was cancelled, but we received three other snake calls. Last week, it was unreasonably warm. It was almost 100 degrees in some areas. That is triggering their body and they want to warm."
Animal control officers carry tongs and a bucket to retrieve the snakes.
"So what we do is open the lid, and then we would capture the rattlesnake using snake tongs," Werner said. "We'd just pick it up and drop it in, and then we close this and transport it to a safer location."
Some tips to avoid rattlesnakes include staying in the middle of trails when hiking. When working in the garden, use a rake to shake the bushes before sticking your hands into an area where snakes hide. Keep pets on a leash when going out for exercise and keep dogs out of the bushes.
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