Gordo’s death ‘devastating’ for massasauga rattlesnake population in Windsor-Essex, expert says

The crushed corpse of a snake was found on a Windsor roadway last week — and a wildlife conservationist says it’s a terrible blow to efforts to save the species in our region.

According to Jonathan Choquette, a biologist with Wildlife Conservation Canada, the dead snake was an eastern massasauga rattlesnake, which has been on the verge of disappearing completely from Windsor-Essex.

“This is a huge hit for a very small population,” Choquette explained. “We’re talking about a handful of individuals … Extinction means that a population of animals is extinct within a particular area.”

The snake’s body was found on September 26 on Matchett Road, north of Sprucewood Avenue – possibly after a fatal encounter with a vehicle.

The traffic victim was not just a representative of a locally rare species: it had a name. “Gordo” was born in captivity, and farmed to adulthood under human care.

In partnership with the Toronto Zoo, Gordo was brought to our area earlier this year and released into the wild – specifically to try to increase the local presence of the species.

Choquette said that an electronic transmitter was implanted in Gordo, and the Ojibway Prairie Reptile Recovery Program was tracking Gordo’s movements. The hope was that he would interact with female massasauga rattlesnakes, who are also being tracked.

“We’re at the point where we really need to restore the population to get it back to something sustainable,” Choquette said.

A team member discovered Gordo’s flattened body in person, recognizing the species’ scale color patterns. Broken pieces of the transmitter were within the remains.

“We were doing a translation study with Gordo,” Choquette said. “We saw him the day before and he was hiding in a bush. The next day, he made a long movement, ended up on the road – and that was unfortunately the end of his life.”

Massasauga rattlers are known to have habitats at three locations in Ontario: the Georgian Bay area, the Niagara Peninsula and the Ojibway Prairie Complex in Windsor-Essex.

Relatively small pit vipers, they are the only truly venomous snakes in the province.

Eastern hog-nosed snakes also have venom, but their bite is adapted for hunting amphibians. Massasauga rattlers have front fangs, and their venom is potentially fatal to humans.

However, there have only been two recorded deaths in Ontario due to massasauga rattlesnake bites, and they both occurred more than 50 years ago.

Choquette points out that heart disease, cancer, automobile accidents, and even bee stings are likely more dangerous than a rattlesnake bite.

Meanwhile, danger to animals – particularly reptiles – is known in the community on Matchett Road. The City of Windsor has installed signs and traffic-sleeving features.

But Choquette said reptile mortality continues on local roadways. His team members have counted more than 80 dead reptiles from six species so far this fall, and they expect this year’s total number of reptile road kills to reach 300 by the end of the month.

Choquette would like to see more protective fencing on Matchett Road. Not just chain-link fencing, but barriers to keep earthworms from crawling onto the roadway.

He knows that it will take investment from the municipal, provincial or federal government. But he thinks it’s worth it to protect an endangered species by becoming a national urban park.

“We have a law where we have decided as a nation that we value wildlife, we value natural creatures,” Choquette said.

“Massasauga rattlers are the most endangered reptile in Essex County. That really makes it a special place.”