Rattlesnake, or rattlesnake. Rattlesnake Rattlesnake habitat map

Rattlesnake(rattlesnake) - the most dangerous tropical poisonous snake, the bite of which is fatal to humans. As the name suggests, these are noisy, rattling creatures. Indeed, some of their species have rattles at the end of the tail made of keratinized movable segments, which, when the tail oscillates quickly from side to side - up to 70 per second - rub against each other and produce a peculiar, well-audible rustle, a bit like the chirping of a movie projector.

There are more than 120 species of rattlesnakes. They live in many countries of North and South America and in Asia. AT Central Asia and on Far East lives close to them species of snakes - muzzle.

Many people believe that snakes hate people so much that, when they see a person, they rush at him, and if he runs away from them, they rush after him. But snakes feed on rodents, birds, insects, bird eggs, and not people. They just avoid people. More often, when we pass by, the snake hides, hides, so as not to betray itself. Attacks in case of danger, direct contact.

The snakes do not have a voice, and in the event of an enemy approaching, when they do not want this meeting, they cannot make a formidable roar, but only hiss not very loudly. And rattlesnakes have learned to use a ratchet. The noise it makes does not cause, of course, positive emotions, because it is known that it comes from very poisonous snake.

The most dangerous are the bites of the terrible rattlesnake - one name is worth it - living in Florida and Brazil, as well as the bushmaster - a South American snake close to rattlesnakes, on the tail of which instead of a rattle there are several pointed plates and a spike, so it is also called a dumb rattlesnake.

In a moment of danger, the rattlesnake stands in a pose of threat - it stands up: with the help of powerful muscles, its body is folded into a tight spring, ready to unfold with terrible force, the tail end is folded into a spiral ring, in the center of which a ratchet-rattle is raised vertically, emitting a distinct rustle. At the same time, the front part of the body looks like a high column.

Snakes are not born with a rattle - they grow it. Newborns have only one large, almost round shield at the end of the tail. Rattlesnakes molt, just like their relatives, especially often in the first year - up to 6 times. After each molt, an additional keratinized skin segment is added to the rattle, because the lagging skin cannot completely peel off the tip of the tail and comes off the skin. In adulthood, this happens about once a year and a half. Crawling between the stones, some snakes accidentally break off, lose their rattles. And then gradually increase them again.

Some time before the molt, the cornea of ​​​​the eyes becomes cloudy, which protects the eyeless eyes of snakes from damage. Temporarily sightless snakes navigate at this time with the help of the tongue, but prefer to hide until sight is restored.

But even blind rattlesnakes can hunt using unique organ, created by nature for their orientation in the dark, is a thermal radar that is able to detect objects that are slightly warmer or colder than the surrounding air, differing in temperature by literally a few tenths of a degree. Apart from rattlesnakes, only some types of vipers have a similar feature.

The teeth of snakes serve mainly to capture and hold prey. A sign of a poisonous snake is the presence of two larger poisonous teeth (usually saber-shaped) than the rest. Inside them, like rattlesnakes, or on the surface, like cobras, there are channels through which poison flows, used to kill the victim during the hunt and for protection at the moment of danger. In most cases, this poison is extremely dangerous for humans.

As you know, when a snake sheds its keratinized upper cover. There is also a change of poisonous teeth. Moreover, at this time, poison continues to be produced in the glands, which spreads along the folds of the gums. So a snake bite, even if it does not have poisonous teeth at that moment, is no less dangerous, since it enters the human blood through the skin. Sometimes, after a bite, not two, but four deep wounds were observed, and it was believed that a new kind of snake was encountered - a four-toothed one. In fact, within one or two days, when the old teeth have not yet fallen out, and the new ones have not taken their place, the snake bites with four poisonous teeth at the same time. Usually, when bitten, two large dots-wounds are clearly visible - traces of poisonous teeth and two parallel rows of smaller dots - traces of non-poisonous teeth.

Currently, rattlesnakes are called the subfamily of the pit viper family. These snakes have a pair of infrared (heat sensitive) dimples located between the nostrils and the eyes. From this came the name of the subfamily.

Today, 175 species of the subfamily of the pitheads have already been described, 69 of them live in southeast Asia, and 106 in America. This subfamily is the only one found on the American continent. The muzzle lives in Russia - in the Far East and Central Asia.

Many people die due to the fact that the behavior of the pitheads is quite aggressive, and the poison is quite strong.

Features of the rattlesnake

Like other representatives of the viper family, the pitheads have a pair of poisonous teeth, hollow and relatively long, poison is exuded from them. The shape of the head, as a rule, is triangular, the pupils in the eyes are located vertically.

The name of the subfamily "pitheads" came from a pair of thermoreceptor dimples located between the nostrils and eyes. They feel infrared radiation very well, and snakes use them to recognize their prey, thanks to the temperature difference. environment and the victims themselves.

These receptors perceive even weak, about 0.1 degrees, changes in air temperature. The snake recognizes rodents and birds even in absolute darkness, since their temperature is much higher for it. These dimples, like primitive eyes, help the snake to choose a prey and attack it very accurately.

Since the pitheads, like the rest of the snakes from the viper family, prefer to hunt at night from an ambush, this quality is simply necessary for them. Among the variety of snakes, only boas have a similar sense organ. The length of rattlesnakes is different: from 50 cm - ciliated viper to 3.5 m - bushmaster.

The name “rattlesnake”, which is widespread in Russia, comes from a pair of species of pit vipers living in North America, which have a “rattle” at the tip of their tail. It is a modified scales. which form movable segments. Special rattling sounds are created when the segments collide as the tip of the tail vibrates.

Rattlesnake habitats

Representatives of the pitheads live from the humid jungle and high mountains to deserts, there are even water sports. Some snakes live on the ground, others live in trees, some climb to a height of more than 1 km. above sea level.

If you do not take into account some species that are active around the clock, the snakes of this subfamily prefer to lead night image life to avoid sun and heat burns and go hunting when most of their prey are active. During the daytime, pitheads prefer to hide in rodent burrows or under rocks. To find the best place to rest, snakes again use their heat-sensitive dimples.

When danger approaches, the rattlesnake becomes a threat - it turns the body with the help of powerful muscles into a tight spring, which at any moment is ready to turn around with terrible force. The tail section is folded into a spiral ring, from the center of which a ratchet rattle rises vertically, emitting a characteristic rustle. In this case, the front part of the body takes the form of a fairly high column.

Newborn snakes do not have a rattle; it grows as they grow older. In newly born cubs, the tip of the tail is crowned by one large, almost round shield. Rattlesnakes, like other relatives, molt, in the first year this happens especially often - up to 6 times. With the completion of each molt, one additional keratinized skin segment is added to the snake on the rattle, since the lagging skin is unable to get off the tail completely, it comes off the skin. In adult snakes, the molting process occurs once every 1-1.5 years. Crawling between stones and through thickets, some of the rattlesnakes accidentally lose their rattles, breaking them off. Then they gradually increase again.

Per certain time before the start of the molt, it becomes opaque, the cornea of ​​​​the eyes becomes cloudy, protecting snake eyes, devoid of eyelids, from damage. The snake temporarily loses sight and navigates during this period with the help of the tongue, but prefers to hide in a shelter until sight is restored. But even snakes that have lost their sight can hunt using a thermo-locator, which can detect objects that have a temperature different from the temperature of the surrounding air. Similar abilities, in addition to rattlesnakes, have only some types of vipers.

Rattlesnake bite

The rattlesnake uses its teeth primarily to grab and hold its prey. A sign of a poisonous snake is a pair of saber-shaped large teeth, larger than the rest. Inside they have channels for the passage of poison, used to kill the victim in the hunt and protect themselves in case of danger. For the most part, rattlesnake venom is extremely dangerous to humans.

A well-known fact is the shedding of the keratinized upper cover by the snake during molting. The same thing happens with poisonous teeth. But even at this time, the snake produces poison, spreading over the folds of the gums. Therefore, a snake bite, even in the absence of poisonous teeth, is dangerous, since the poison can enter the human blood through the skin.

In some cases, after being bitten by a rattlesnake, people saw four wounds, and not two, as usual. Then they made erroneous conclusions about the emergence of a new four-toothed species of snake. In fact, for about a couple of days, the snake bites both with old teeth that have not yet fallen out, and with new ones that have not yet fallen into place. Usually, when bitten, a pair of large dots-wounds are clearly visible - traces of poisonous teeth and two rows of small dots left by non-poisonous teeth.

It is difficult to predict how a rattlesnake bite will affect a particular person, how the poison will work. Many factors influence this. The main ones are the quality and quantity of the poison, the place of the bite (the closer it is to the head, the more dangerous), how deep the snake teeth penetrated the human skin, in what mental and physical condition the person was present at the time of the bite. But in any case, a person needs to be provided with immediate and qualified medical assistance.

First aid should be provided meaningfully, since uncontrolled application of various objects to the bitten place - from red-hot iron objects and coals from a fire to cold earth does not help, but only aggravates the patient's condition.

It happened that a person who was bitten by a rattlesnake had his fingers cut off, or even the entire hand, only this cruel method did not justify itself at all. It is often believed that poison is a poison for the body, and they try to disinfect it with an alcohol solution. But this can only have the opposite effect - the vessels dilate, the absorption of the poison accelerates.

by the most effective tool is a special serum produced on the basis of snake venom. Also, snake venom is used in small doses, with the addition of other elements, as a therapeutic drug. For example, rattlesnake venom is successfully used to treat leprosy, and water muzzle to stop severe bleeding.

Rattlesnake venom

To receive regularly a large number of poison, special serpentarium nurseries are created, in which they contain thousands of snakes, regularly collecting poison from them. Only now the snakes do not live there for long, only about six months, although in a zoo, with good maintenance, they can withstand about 10-12 years.
Rattlesnakes generally adapt quickly to captivity. Despite the fact that at first they may refuse to take food, they gradually become accustomed to the attendants, the snakes begin to take food from special tongs and can even allow themselves to be touched. But snakes are insidious creatures, they can bite very unexpectedly, even if before that long time behave approximately.

Sometimes a rattlesnake can starve for a long time - up to nine months. Even if, for example, a live rat is launched towards it, the snake does not show any interest, and the potential victim is also not afraid of the snake, only being excited by the noise of the rattle. Once there was even such a case: a rattlesnake was bitten by rats. When snakes are hungry, they bathe, drink water, shed their old skin, and only after all this are they ready to eat.

Although snakes are poisonous, they also sometimes become prey for many animals (ferrets, hedgehogs, martens, weasels) and birds (ravens, vultures, buzzards, spotted eagles, peacocks). They are not affected by snake venom at all, or it is very weak for them.

The more the territory of America was populated, the smaller the population of snakes on it became, as they began to be eaten by pigs that are not afraid snake bites due to their penetration into the subcutaneous fat, where there are practically no blood vessels into which the poison can enter. In the states of Florida and Georgia, people also eat rattlesnakes, claiming that the meat tastes like chicken.

South American Indians from ancient times noticed the poisonous effect of snake venom on humans and animals and began to use it in war and hunting. Bows and arrows have always been the main weapon of the Indians. The main part of the poison for arrows is curare (juice from the roots of chondrodendron and styrchnos), snake venom is added to it. The poison is applied to the tip of the arrow, retains its properties for a long time. If the arrow hits big bird or an animal, even slightly hitting an animal, it will die in a couple of minutes. Paralysis sets in motor system body stops breathing.

Indian snake cult

Among the Indians of the South and North America widespread cult of snakes. Their rattlesnakes are sacred animals, considered intermediaries between people and gods. For a long time, with the onset of drought and crop failure, the Indians performed a snake dance. During it, they swing large two-meter snakes, like whips, throw them on the ground, calls are made to enter into negotiations with the deity. The crowd sings, asking the gods to send them grace in the form of rain and harvest. Serpents are also worshiped by the inhabitants of East India and North Africa, there are even special holidays dedicated to them.

The rattlesnake is one of the most dangerous reptiles, whose venom can quickly kill a person. There are many rumors about her.

In this article, we will take a closer look at what it is and where you should be on the alert to avoid an unwanted meeting with it.

What does it look like and why is it called that?

rattlesnake in broad sense The term refers to the entire subfamily of pit vipers. They are called pitheads because of the two heat-sensitive pits between the eyes and nostrils.

By the way, with a rattle on the tail, making a rather loud rustle, there are only 2 types of rattlesnakes: real and dwarf.

Did you know?Sometimes, in panic attacks, the pit viper begins to bite everything around, including itself, but its own poison is not dangerous for the reptile itself.

Peculiarities appearance rattlesnakes are:

• reptiles within the subfamily can differ both in the coloring of almost all the colors of the rainbow and patterns (rarely rattlesnakes are completely the same color), and in length, which varies from 0.5 m (ciliated viper) to 3.5 m (bushmaster);
• the pattern is mainly formed by intertwined thick stripes or rhombuses;
• the head of these representatives of reptiles is wedge-shaped with small eyes and two long hollow poisonous teeth;
• the pupils of rattlesnakes are vertical;
• thanks to heat-sensitive dimples on the muzzle, the snake in the dark recognizes the prey well due to the temperature difference between the prey and the environment. These receptors are able to detect a difference of 0.1 °C.
• at the end of the tail there are ring-shaped cornifications, which, as mentioned above, are not capable of producing a perceptible sound in everyone. The "rattle" in rattlesnakes is formed during molting. The skin peels off the body and, curling up into a ring, remains at the tip of the tail. So, segment by segment, the reptile's ratchet grows. Over time, the number of segments will develop in such a way that there will be enough rings in the rattle to make a characteristic sound. Gradually, some rings fall off, and others appear in their place. The cornifications are hollow inside and freely rub against each other, which gives rise to their characteristic sound. It is because of this feature that the subfamily of pit vipers was called rattlesnakes.

Is a bite dangerous: the effect of poison on a person

The bite of a rattlesnake is considered extremely dangerous to humans. It is difficult to predict how the poison will affect a particular person, since many factors affect the result, ranging from the site of the bite (the closer to the brain, the more dangerous) and ending with the psychophysical state of the victim.

The entry of toxins into the blood can lead to anaphylactic shock, kidney failure, difficulty breathing, internal bleeding, and death. Only in the USA, from 10 to 15 people die on average per year (you should take into account the prevalence of the antidote in those states where rattlesnakes live).

Among the common first aid mistakes is trying to decontaminate a wound with alcohol, which actually backfires. Alcohol dilates the blood vessels, and the poison is absorbed faster. Amputation of the bitten limb may also fail.

Important!The only real treatment is the administration of snake venom serum.

When bitten, do the following:

1. First of all, the affected person should be removed away from the place of attack in order to prevent subsequent bites.
2. Call an ambulance or go to the medical center yourself, where they can help.
3. The victim of a bite should move as little as possible, as this raises body temperature, which will only aggravate the situation.
4. Remove any jewelry or clothing that may constrict the limbs.
5. Wash the wound with water.
6. The bite area is best kept below the level of the heart.
7. If available, inject anti-snake serum yourself.

The rattlesnake itself is cowardly and does not attack if there is an opportunity to escape.

Where does the rattlesnake live

Pitheads live in a very various conditions. There are species that live in desert or mountainous areas, in the jungle, there are even several aquatic representatives.

The most widespread rattlesnakes were in South-East Asia(69 species) and in North and South America (106 species). Cottonmouths can be found in both hemispheres of the Earth, including the Far East and Central Asia.

The eastern muzzle lives in Japan, China and Korea, and the Himalayan is found at altitudes up to 5000 m above sea level. The habitat of rattlesnakes also includes Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Mongolia, Azerbaijan, Indochina, Java and Sumatra.

Rattlesnakes are active at night, also to avoid heat burn. Often they hide in the holes of small rodents, under fallen trees or under stones.
Before the onset of cold weather, reptiles come out of their shelters to bask in the sun. Pregnant snakes do this especially often. Most wintering species prefer to gather in the same place with their own kind in order to simplify heating during hibernation.

Did you know?Rattlesnake can die at ambient temperatures above +45 ° C.

What does it eat

Rattlesnakes are predators by nature. They feed mainly on small rodents, although birds, frogs, lizards, small snakes, rabbits, grasshoppers, cicadas and even fish are also present in their diet.

Pitheads infect prey with poison, acting from an ambush. At the moment before the attack, the neck of the reptile bends in the form latin letter"S", and the muzzle is directed towards the victim. The length of the throw, as a rule, is about a third of the length of the body.

It feeds on average once a week, consuming prey equal to half its own weight.

Who prey on the snakes themselves

The natural enemies of rattlesnakes are hawks, vultures, coyotes, foxes, raccoons, ferrets, some large species snakes (for example, Mussurans), hedgehogs, weasels, martens. This is due to the fact that the poison of the pitheads does not act at all or has little effect on these animals.

Also, animals that eat rattlesnakes include pigs, through whose subcutaneous fat poisonous teeth make their way very hard. Even California running cuckoos can become a threat to the population.

And the most dangerous enemy for the described reptiles, of course, is the man himself, who hunts them because of the skin. And in some states of the United States and in the countries of Southeast Asia, snake meat is considered a delicacy and is in demand.

reproduction

In April-May (that is, after wintering), these snakes mate. Often the seed is stored in the female until the next season. Most pitheads are viviparous, but there are many species that lay eggs.

In a litter, depending on the species, there can be from 2 to 86 cubs. In ten-day-old snakes, for the first time, the skin is shed in such a way that a "button" is formed in the tail.
The female will be ready for the next mating in 2 years.

Rattlesnakes - dangerous representatives of their family, capable of killing a person when attacked. However, they rarely attack people and only when they feel threatened themselves, preferring to run away in most cases.

Subject to simple rules safety in the area where rattlesnakes live, you can avoid meeting these unusual predators.

Rattlesnake, rattlesnake belongs to the subfamily Rattlesnakes or Hollowheads (Crotalinae) of the Viper family. It’s worth clarifying right away that the subfamily Rattlesnakes is very numerous and includes more than 170 species. However, only two genera of snakes in this subfamily have a rattle at the end of the tail: the True rattlesnake (Crotalus) and the Pygmy rattlesnake (Sistrurus). It is about them that we will talk.

Where does the rattlesnake live?

The rattlesnake can be found mainly in North America. There it lives in dry deserts among low bushes, as well as in rocky areas near rivers and lakes. The rattlesnake settles in rodent burrows, which it expands if necessary. Can live in shelters among stones.

Appearance and biological features

The body length of a rattlesnake is usually 60-80 cm, but there are species about 1.5 m long. The color of the scales of the snake is dark gray with brown and black spots and stripes, but again different types drawing can be very different. The belly is yellowish with dark speckles. Rattlesnake head triangular shape. On it, between the eyes and nostrils, there are several thermoreceptor pits. They are very sensitive to infrared radiation and help the snake to detect the victim due to the difference in ambient temperature and body temperature of the victim itself. Due to the presence of these pits on the head of a rattlesnake, the subfamily to which it belongs was called the Pitheads.

Rattlesnakes can only see up close. Their eyesight and hearing are poor. But they are very sensitive to vibrations of the earth, air and heat. The small nostrils of a rattlesnake perceive odors well. In addition, the snake is able to catch them with its tongue, which has special sensitive receptors.

rattlesnake rattle

The most important and basic distinguishing feature rattlesnake - a rattle at the end of the tail or a rattle. What is this device and why is it needed? The rattlesnake rattle is a skin formation consisting of several horny plates very similar to cones. These cones are slightly flattened and empty inside, and they are interconnected in such a way that they can move freely and rub against each other. It is due to the friction of the horn plates that the rattlesnake emits a characteristic rustling.

The rattle on the tail of a rattlesnake is formed as follows. During molting, the skin on the tail does not completely peel off, and its remnants roll up, forming a ring (cone). Many believe that the number of these rings can be used to determine the approximate age of a rattlesnake. However, such calculations will be very inaccurate, since a rattlesnake can molt more than once a year, and the next segment on the rattle is not always formed after each molt. In addition, rattlesnakes often lose their rattles from their tails, breaking them off in narrow crevices between rocks. After which they have to grow again.

There is an opinion that the rattlesnake is very dangerous, aggressive, tenacious and fast as lightning. This is not entirely true. And, as usual, on the site "" we will destroy interesting myths and tales about animals, replacing them with scientific facts.

In fact, the rattlesnake is rather cowardly and, having met a large animal or person, it never attacks first, preferring to remain unnoticed. And the rustling of a rattle on the tail does not mean at all that she is preparing for
attack. This indicates that the rattlesnake has been taken by surprise and is very nervous. The snake, as it were, warns that it does not want to go into conflict, but if it is disturbed, then it will certainly defend itself. But when a rattlesnake hunts, it does not betray its presence in any way and rushes at the victim without warning.

By the way, the speed of her body movement during the throw is greatly exaggerated. She rushes at the victim a little faster than the average person punches.

And she's not that survivable. For example, a temperature of 45 ° C can be fatal for her.

But the venom of a rattlesnake is really very dangerous, and can be fatal to humans. The bite of a rattlesnake is so strong that with its teeth it easily breaks through durable leather shoes. However, these circumstances are mitigated by the fact that the rattlesnake lives mainly in an uninhabited desert area, where a person often does not need to walk and where it is not difficult to notice a snake. The rattle of a rattle will always warn you that you have invaded a rattlesnake's territory.

still exists interesting fact about the "suicide" of a rattlesnake. It is believed that a wounded rattlesnake that senses doom tries to commit suicide by biting itself. Indeed, being in a panic, the rattlesnake seems to go crazy, starts to bounce and bite everything that is around it, even its own body. However, her own poison is not dangerous for her.

What does a rattlesnake eat?

Rattlesnakes living in captivity refuse to eat for a long time. Cases are known when snakes
were starving longer than a year and did not even pay attention to the rats and mice running nearby. AT vivo she eats once a week, eating food by weight, half own weight. Consumes small mammals, amphibians and birds. Hunts them at night, attacking from an ambush.

Quite often, rattlesnakes themselves become food for mammals, birds, and even fish. Ferrets, martens, weasels, eagles, peacocks, crows eat snakes, since their poison has a very weak effect on them. There was also information in the media that a Californian fisherman caught a trout with a 60 cm long rattlesnake in its stomach.

Domestic pigs are also not afraid of rattlesnake bites. A thick layer of subcutaneous fat protects the blood vessels, and the snake's venom cannot enter the bloodstream. And the pigs themselves are also not averse to eating a rattlesnake. Farmers take advantage of this feature and release a herd of pigs into the field before plowing it.

It will be interesting to watch a short video that was filmed by eyewitnesses who accidentally met a rattlesnake on their way to highlands. From a safe distance, the snake does not look aggressive, but a loud hissing puts unusual pressure on the psyche and scares people away.

Every rattlesnake is venomous, but few have the tail rattle that gave its name to this vast subfamily of over two hundred species.

Description

Rattlesnakes (in the broad sense of the term) include one of the subfamilies that are part of the viper family. Herpetologists classify them as Crotalinae, at the same time calling them rattlesnakes or pitheads (due to a pair of thermolocator pits planted between the nostrils and eyes).

Surukuku (they are also formidable bushmasters), temple keffis, zhararaks, millet rattlesnakes, urutu, American spearhead snakes - all this creeping variety belongs to the subfamily Crotalinae, consisting of 21 genera and 224 species.

One of the genera bears the proud name of Crotalus - real rattlesnakes. This genus includes 36 species, including miniature dwarf rattlesnakes, about half a meter long, as well as rhombic rattlesnakes (Crotalus adamanteus), growing up to 2 and a half meters. By the way, many herpetologists consider the latter to be the classic and most beautiful rattlesnakes.

Appearance of the snake

Hollow-headed snakes differ from each other both in size (from 0.5 m to 3.5 m) and in color, which, as a rule, is polychrome. The scales can be painted in almost all colors of the rainbow - white, black, steel, beige, emerald green, reddish-pink, brown, yellow and more. These reptiles are rarely monochromatic, not afraid to display intricate patterns and flashy colors.

The main background often looks like an interweaving of thick stripes, streaks or rhombuses. Sometimes, as in the case of Celebes keffiyeh, the predominant color (bright green) is only slightly diluted with thin blue-white stripes.

Rattlesnakes are related by a wedge-shaped head, two elongated fangs (through which the poison passes) and a tail ratchet made of ring-shaped cornifications.

Important! Not all reptiles are equipped with rattles - they are not, for example, in the muzzle, as well as in the Catalina rattlesnake living on about. Santa Catalina (Gulf of California).

The tail rattle is needed by the snake to scare off enemies, and its growth continues throughout life. The thickening at the end of the tail appears after the first molt. During the next molts, fragments of old skin cling to this growth, leading to the formation of a relief ratchet.

When moving, the rings are lost, but most of remains to serve as an instrument of intimidation/warning of the enemy. The vibration of the tail raised up, topped with a rattle, indicates that the reptile is nervous and you better get out of its way.

According to Nikolai Drozdov, the sound of the vibrating rings is similar to the crackling produced by a narrow-film film projector and can be heard at a distance of up to 30 meters.

Lifespan

If rattlesnakes lived the entire period assigned to them by nature, they would not leave this world before 30 years. At least, this is how long the pitheads live in captivity (in satiety and without natural enemies). In freedom, these reptiles do not always reach twenty, and the vast majority die much earlier.

Range, habitats

According to herpetologists, almost half of the rattlesnakes (106 species) live on the American continent and quite a lot (69 species) in Southeast Asia.

The only pitheads that have penetrated both hemispheres of the earth are called muzzles.. True, in North America there are much fewer of them - only three species. Two (eastern and common muzzle) were found in the Far East of our country, in Central Asia and Azerbaijan. Oriental is also found in China, Japan and Korea, whose inhabitants have learned to cook excellent dishes from snake meat.

The common muzzle can be seen in Afghanistan, Iran, Korea, Mongolia and China, and the hook-nosed one can be seen in Sri Lanka and India. The smooth muzzle lives on the Indochinese peninsula, on Sumatra and Java. Himalayan prefers mountains, conquering peaks up to 5 thousand meters.

A variety of keffis live in the Eastern Hemisphere, the most impressive of which is considered a resident of Japan - a one and a half meter habu. The mountain keffiyeh was registered in the Indochinese peninsula and the Himalayas, and the bamboo one - in India, Nepal and Pakistan.

In the Western Hemisphere, other pitheads, called bothrops, are also common. The most numerous rattlesnakes in Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay are considered zhararaki, and Mexico - rutu.

Rattlesnake lifestyle

The pitheads are such a diverse community that its members can be found anywhere from deserts to mountains. For example, the water muzzle "grazes" in swamps, wet meadows, banks of ponds and rivers, while Bothrops athrox prefers the tropical jungle.

Some rattlesnakes almost do not get off the trees, others feel great confidence on the ground, others have chosen the rocks.

On a hot afternoon, rattlesnakes rest under boulders, trunks of fallen trees, under decaying fallen leaves, in the bases of stumps and in holes left by rodents, gaining vigor closer to dusk. Nocturnal activity is typical for a hot season: in the cool seasons, snakes are nimble during the daytime.

Chilling in the cold season, as well as pregnant reptiles often take sunbaths.

It is interesting! Many rattlesnakes remain faithful to the once chosen hole for years, in which their numerous descendants continue to live. Nora seems to be inherited for tens and hundreds of years.

Huge snake colonies live in such a family lair. Next to the hole are the first outing, hunting, mating and even seasonal migrations. Some species of rattlesnakes overwinter in big companies, warming each other during hibernation, others - keep apart.

Ration, prey

Rattlesnakes, like typical ambush predators, take position and wait for prey to come within throwing distance. An S-shaped bend of the neck, in which the rattlesnake's head looks towards the enemy, serves as a signal of the upcoming attack. The length of the throw is equal to 1/3 of the length of the snake's body.

Like other vipers, pit vipers infect prey with venom rather than strangulation. Rattlesnakes feed mainly on small warm-blooded animals, but not only on them. The diet (depending on the range) contains:

• rodents, including mice, rats and rabbits;
• birds;
• fish;
• frogs;
• lizards;
• small snakes;
• insects, including cicadas and caterpillars.

Teenage snakes often use their brightly colored tail tip to lure frogs as well.

During the day, rattlesnakes find prey with the help of ordinary organs of vision, but an object frozen without movement may not be noticed. At night, temperature-responsive pits come to their aid, distinguishing fractions of degrees. Even in pitch darkness, the snake sees the thermal contour of the victim, created by infrared radiation.

Enemies of the rattlesnake

This is, first of all, a person who destroys reptiles in hunting excitement or because of unjustified fear. A lot of rattlesnakes are crushed on the roads. In general, the population of pit vipers, like other snakes, has significantly decreased on the planet.

Factors that reduce the number of rattlesnakes include night frosts, which are deadly for newly hatched juveniles.

Rattlesnake breeding

Most viviparous rattlesnakes mate after wintering (in April-May) or later, depending on the range. Often, summer sperm is stored in the body of the female until the next spring, and only in June does the reptile lay eggs. In the clutch there are from 2 to 86 (Bothrops atrox) pieces, but on average 9-12, and after three months the offspring are born.

As a rule, before laying eggs, females crawl away from their burrow for 0.5 km, but it happens that snakes hatch right in the family nest. After 2 years, the female, who has regained her strength, will be ready for the next mating.

At the age of 10 days, rattlesnakes shed their skin for the first time, during which a “button” is formed at the tip of the tail, which eventually turns into a ratchet. Around the beginning of October, snakes try to find their way to their native hole, but not everyone succeeds: some die from the cold and predators, others go astray.

Male pitheads reach sexual maturity at 2 years of age, females at 3 years of age.