PHOENIX – Officials with the Arizona Game and Fish Department said unseasonably warm temperatures in the state will increase risks for rattlesnake encounters.

What they’re saying:

In a statement released on Feb. 27, the agency said while rattlesnakes are most active in desert areas from March through October, they “may appear earlier in the year as warming temperatures bring them out of winter hibernation.”

“During the spring, it’s common for rattlesnakes to be out during daylight hours,” read a portion of the statement. “As the days become increasingly hot, rattlesnakes tend to move around more at night.”

What you can do:

Officials said there are things people can do to keep themselves safe, including:

• Step back and let a rattlesnake move away if you see one on a trail
• Be mindful of where you place your feet and hands, because rattlesnakes can easily blend in with their surroundings
• Carry a flashlight at night, especially on warmer nights when rattlesnakes can be most active
• Clean up yard debris and reduce standing water near homes, in order to avoid attracting rattlesnakes
• Stay on marked trails, as rattlesnakes encounters are more likely to occur when a person leaves a marked trail

Game and Fish officials said people should do the following if someone was bitten by a rattlesnake:

• Remain calm
• Reassure the victim
• Call 911 and seek medical attention without delay
• Remove all jewelry and watches from the affected area
• Immobilize the extremity, and keep it below the heart
• Decrease total body activity, as feasible

Rob Bonta, California’s attorney general, said his office will investigate a possible merger between Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros Discovery, hours after Netflix backed away from a planned takeover.

“Paramount/Warner Bros is not a done deal,” Bonta said in a post on X. “These two Hollywood titans have not cleared regulatory scrutiny — the California Department of Justice has an open investigation, and we intend to be vigorous in our review.”

Any acquisition of Warner Bros would require approval from regulators in the United States and Europe, including the US justice department’s antitrust division. The deal Paramount struck for Warner is valued at nearly $111bn.

The merger poses a risk for California’s economy. Paramount’s bid is likely to raise concerns about job cuts in the state, which also dogged Netflix’s bid. Paramount sees $6bn in cost “synergies” in the deal, which typically means massive layoffs, reducing the number of suppliers, squeezing existing contractors for better terms after the two companies merge or other reductions.

The chief executive of Paramount, David Ellison, said his company was pleased the Warner Bros board had “unanimously affirmed the superior value of our offer”, which he said delivered “WBD shareholders superior value, certainty and speed to closing”. Ellison is the son of Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, a close ally of Donald Trump.

On Friday, Warner Bros Discovery reportedly agreed to be acquired by Paramount Skydance. Reuters and Deadline reported that the deal was announced in a global town hall by the company. Paramount and Warner Bros did not immediately confirm the deal to the Guardian.

A merger between the two media giants is also facing backlash from several lawmakers. Senator Elizabeth Warren, a key voice against growing monopolies, echoed Bonta’s concerns after Netflix walked away from the deal on Thursday, and noted that Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos was seen at the White House shortly before the company said it would bow out of the deal.

“A Paramount Skydance-Warner Bros merger is an antitrust disaster threatening higher prices and fewer choices for American families,” Warren said in a statement. “What did Trump officials tell the Netflix CEO today at the White House? A handful of Trump-aligned billionaires are trying to seize control of what you watch and charge you whatever price they want.”

The senator added: “With the cloud of corruption looming over Trump’s Department of Justice, it’ll be up to the American people to speak up and state attorneys general to enforce the law.”

On Friday, Bonta responded to concerns about the merger posted by actor Mark Ruffalo.

“Please let’s circle up all the State AG’s and talk about how this is going to kill completion in the industry and drive down wages, and product quality for consumers,” Ruffalo posted.

“There are lots of agents in Hollywood who can tell you how past mergers and consolidations have hurt their clients and business. There is lots of talent that can tell you the same.”

Bonta reposted the actor’s comments, responding that he is in “conversation with my AG colleagues about Paramount/Warner Bros”.

The California department of justice did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the Guardian.

The Writers Guild of America, the union representing thousands of television and film writers along with other media workers, has said a Paramount takeover of Warner Bros would hurt jobs.

Warner Bros canceled $2bn in content after merging with Discovery in 2022, and Paramount’s recent merger with Skydance led to 1,000 layoffs, the union said in written testimony to the US Senate.

Friday morning wrapped up a warm storm across Colorado’s northern and central mountains, bringing totals of up to 10 inches of snowfall for several resorts.

Higher elevation areas of the northern mountains — particularly those in and near Summit County and closer to the Continental Divide — received the most amount of snow, with Copper, Winter Park and Breckenridge mountains seeing among the highest totals.

Meanwhile, lower base areas and valleys received rain and cloudy skies, thanks to a warmer storm with a snow line of roughly 9,000 feet.

Earlier this week, OpenSnow meteorologists predicted the storm’s snow totals would be around 5-10 inches, closely matching actual totals for the northern mountains. The central mountains all saw less than 5 inches of snow.

Here’s how much snow fell between Wednesday through Friday morning for some Western Slope mountains, according to a Friday report from OpenSnow:

Aspen Mountain: 0.5 inches

Snowmass: 0.5 inches

Copper Mountain: 10 inches

Winter Park: 9 inches

Breckenridge Ski Resort: 9 inches

Arapahoe Basin Ski Area: 8.5 inches

Keystone Resort: 8 inches

Loveland Ski Area: 7 inches

Vail Mountain: 7 inches

Steamboat Resort: 6 inches

Beaver Creek: 6 inches

Irwin: 4.5 inches

Cooper Mountain: 4 inches

Sunlight: 0.5 inches

Friday and Saturday will be dry, while Sunday will bring northern showers. The next storms are forecast to be around March 3-4 and March 6-7, both favoring the northern mountains.