Legacy of rare Windsor, Ont., rattlesnake continues despite road death

Legacy of rare Windsor, Ont., rattlesnake continues despite road death

Gordo, an Eastern Massausaga rattler, died on Matchett Road last summer — but not before successfully mating

Gordo, an Eastern Massasauga rattlesnake, may have met his end on Matchett Road last summer — but that doesn't mean his genetic line is finished.

A local reptile conservation expert says Gordo successfully mated before his death, and now his offspring — seven baby rattlesnakes — are being raised for eventual local release.

"I think it's great. It's certainly symbolic," said Jonathan Choquette, a PhD biologist who leads the Ojibway Prairie Reptile Recovery program of Wildlife Preservation Canada.

"[Those babies] definitely have Ojibway genetics in their blood."

Eastern Massasauga rattlers are almost extinct in Windsor-Essex, despite being native to the region. Local numbers could be fewer than 10.

They're the only venomous snake species in Ontario, and are critically endangered across the province. According to Ontario Nature, the snakes usually pass unnoticed; if threatened they will rattle or retreat, but only bite as a last resort.

Death of Eastern Massasauga rattlesnake devastating to local population, says expert

Gordo was a prime male specimen brought to the Ojibway Prairie Complex in hopes of revitalizing the population there. He was nicknamed and tracked by Choquette's team.

Although Gordo was raised to adulthood at Toronto Zoo, his lineage could be traced to Eastern Massasauga rattlesnakes that were rescued in LaSalle more than 25 years ago.

But in September 2025, Gordo's crushed corpse was found on Matchett Road, presumably having been run over by a vehicle.

Gordo was identifiable because of his electronic transmitter implant.

"Massasaugas are on the brink of extirpation (local disappearance) in Windsor-Essex," Choquette said. "The population is not viable unless we actually do the work to augment them."

Choquette and his team were aware that prior to Gordo's untimely demise, he mated with a female specimen they had nicknamed Ashley.

But Choquette says they didn't have confirmation Ashley was pregnant until earlier this year, when she was sent to Toronto Zoo for replacement of her transmitter implant: An X-ray revealed she was carrying eggs.

Windsor Morning: An update on Gordo on World Snake Day

Like all rattlesnake species, Eastern Massasauga rattlers are ovoviviparous, meaning their eggs hatch internally and then live birth occurs, which in Ashley's case occurred earlier this spring at the zoo.

Choquette says the children of Gordo and Ashley will remain in captivity until they are yearlings. The hope is that next summer, they'll be ready for release in the Ojibway Prairie Complex, allowing the legacy of Gordo to continue in Windsor-Essex.

"It's worth pointing out that this is the only tallgrass prairie population of Massasauga rattlesnakes in Canada," Choquette says. "It's a very unique element of our Canadian natural heritage."

Dalson Chen is a video journalist at CBC Windsor. He is a graduate of the University of Guelph and Ryerson University (Toronto Metropolitan University). His past areas of coverage have included arts, crime, courts, municipal affairs, and human interest. He can be reached via dalson.chen@cbc.ca.