Scientists Say Rattlesnakes Have Devised A Smart Way To Trick Humans

After all, you don’t really want to fall victim to a rattlesnake! They can be quite scary, and they’re full of venom. And don’t think you won’t ever meet one. These snakes live all over the Americas, though they’re most commonly found in the north of Mexico and to the southwest of the United States.

You may think that the rattlesnake’s just one species, but that’s not really the case. There are over 24 different varieties of these noisy reptiles. And around half of these can be found in Arizona.

Even if you’re not in Arizona, though, you’ll know the sound of an agitated rattlesnake. And if you hear that noise, you can pretty much take it as a warning. There’s a snake somewhere in the vicinity, and it’s telling you in no uncertain terms to keep your distance. Or, at least, that’s what we used to believe...

It turns out, though, that rattlesnakes are actually living up to their sly reputations when they’re making this noise. Researchers have discovered that this behavior actually serves to dupe humans and other animals into believing they’re upsetting the reptiles. Basically, the snakes are performing an ingenious trick to fox us and keep themselves safe.

We never thought that rattlesnakes could get even scarier! But, somehow, they’ve found a way to do it. And yes, it all involves the rattle at the end of the snake’s tail, which is actually made up of pieces of bone-like material.

The rattle isn’t fixed. Bits of it begin to get worn down after a while before they fall away completely. But this isn’t an issue for the snake, as it regenerates when its skin sheds. And reptile expert Sara Viernum has warned what this means, saying, “Each time a rattlesnake sheds its skin, it adds another segment to the rattle.” That’s a pretty nasty trick in itself...

As warning mechanisms go, the rattlesnake’s is up there with the most refined in nature. That isn’t a surprise, as these creatures evolved not so long ago. Of all the different types of serpent in the world, the rattlesnake’s one of the most recent to come into being. But not all of them have those rattles to trick you with.

All of the babies, for instance, are born without rattles, and they only develop as they get older. An adult snake may simply lose its rattle, too. But even so, these snakes still have ways of letting other animals know that they need to back off.

Agitated rattlesnakes are known to hiss, so even one without a rattle can communicate its aggression. An expert named Laurence Monroe Klauber reflected on this behavior in Rattlesnakes: Their Habits, Life Histories, and Influence on Mankind. He wrote that the action “is similar to a cat hissing when threatened by a dog. In rattlesnakes, hissing and rattling their tails both serve as warning signals.” It’s only through the tail that the snakes trick us, however.

And no, that hissing isn’t used as a way of communicating with other members of the species. Snakes aren’t actually able to hear such a noise. The sound is produced purely for other animals to hear and fear.

The reason that snakes don’t communicate with their hissing is simple: they don’t possess any ears. This means that they’re unable to perceive most noises. What they can do, though, is pick up on vibrations in the terrain around them. So, if an animal moves within the vicinity of the snake, the slithery reptile will feel it. And that includes you. Even if you keep completely schtum around a rattlesnake, it’ll know you’re there.

Rattlesnakes have other sensory quirks that make up for their lack of ears. Their eyes, for instance, are very perceptive – even when it’s dark out. Their pupils are vertical, you see, just as they are in cats. Looks like rattlesnakes and cats have a surprising amount in common!

Viernum elaborated on a few more of the rattlesnake’s most notable features to Live Science. She explained, “Other distinctive physical characteristics include producing venom, heat-sensing facial pits, hinged fangs and live births. These characteristics are shared with other pit vipers such as the cottonmouth and copperhead.”

This “heat-sensing facial pit” that Viernum brought up is a fascinating feature of rattlers. Basically, it’s a sort of depression in the animal’s head that functions as a special kind of sense organ. And, cleverly, it’s able to pick up on the heat emitted from other creatures’ bodies. That could be crucial when trying to trap prey.

And the way rattlesnakes raise their young doesn’t exactly do much to soften their associations with wickedness. That’s because they don’t raise them at all. When a female gives birth – normally to around ten babies – she immediately abandons them, and the young set off on their own. If they’re lucky, they’ll go on to survive for the next decade or two. Yes, longer than you think! But if you think they won’t live near you, you may be mistaken.

You see, rattlesnakes can live in many different kinds of environment, including grasslands, rocky terrains, swamps and shrublands. They thrive in high places, too – anywhere from sea level all the way up to a height of around 11,000 feet. No, they’re not just desert dwellers.

Mind you, rattlesnakes in cold environments may need to hibernate during the winter months. They’ll do this in dens, which are usually found in gaps between rocks. It’s quite common for different generations to stay in the same den. A site observed by the San Diego Zoo has apparently remained in use for over a century!

Then, when they’ve exited their rocky dens, rattlesnakes will soak up some sun out in the open. They’re usually seen during the daytime, though in the warmer months they’ll sometimes be out in the nighttime as well. And surprising as it may sound, they have to be careful of predators. Kingsnakes are actually quite fond of eating rattlers, for example.

As for the rattlesnakes’ own diet? They tend to enjoy eating lizards and smaller rodents. The snake stays very still, watching out for potential prey wandering past. Then it pounces with extreme speed, stunning its victim with a poisonous bite and eating it entirely. And while you may not get eaten by a snake, it can still use its crafty trick on you.

Hunting’s one thing, but the act of digestion is a pretty arduous task for a rattlesnake. The whole procedure may last for days at a time, and the snake will be slow and lethargic during that period. Luckily, it only needs to feed about twice a month.

And while rattlesnakes clearly aren’t interested in eating people, they’re happy to bite humans. Usually, that’s when a person has trodden on the snake’s body. The venom of the bite can be quite dangerous, too. How dangerous? Well, you should probably be scared...

Yup, rattlesnake venom can certainly do some damage. Viernum revealed all, saying, “The venom of most rattlesnake species is composed mainly of hemotoxins. Symptoms include temporary and/or permanent tissue and muscle damage, loss of an extremity depending on the location of the bite, internal bleeding, and extreme pain around the injection area.” Yeah, definitely not pleasant – and there could be even worse news to come.

That’s because scientists have a sinister theory. Apparently, rattlesnake venom is changing – and not for the better. It’s actually increasingly neurotoxic nowadays, it’s said, as rodents adapt to survive the bites.

So, even though you’re unlikely to die from a rattlesnake bite, it’s definitely best to try to avoid one. Especially now that we have evidence suggesting their venom’s becoming more dangerous! If you ever hear an aggressive rattling in your vicinity, then, you’d better be careful, as the snake may be trying to trick you. But just how does it manage to do that?

Well, a new study has shown just how sneaky these creatures really are. Basically, they’re able to dupe other animals – including humans – into believing that they’re nearer to you than really is the case.

What happens is that the snakes turn up their rattles’ frequencies. Professor Boris Chagnaud, one of the researchers involved in the study, explained to Science Focus, “The sudden switch to the high-frequency mode acts as a smart signal, fooling the listener about its actual distance to the sound source. The misinterpretation of distance by the listener thereby creates a distance safety margin.”

And this sudden change in frequency has a clever effect. It makes it sound like the snake is closer than it is, which serves as a message to any other animal that they should back off. As Professor Chagnaud phrased it, the sound acts as an “intricate interspecies communication signal.”

In their study, Chagnaud and his colleagues elaborate on what they mean by this term. They write, “Our ability to convey information to our personal and work environment enables us to interact in the society. Communication is taking place when a signaler affects the behavior of a listener and is thus not restricted to signaling within a species but also readily occurs across species. The acoustic display of rattlesnakes is one such striking example of interspecies communication.”

The researchers go on to talk about all the variables at play when a snake is rattling. As they put it, “The probability of a snake to rattle and the acoustic properties of the rattling display depend on various factors, such as one’s distance to a snake, body temperature, pregnancy, size of the snake, and on the amount of rattle segments.” But how do they know all this for sure?

By doing an experiment, of course! Basically, the experts got hold of a dummy that looks like a person, and then they moved it in the direction of a rattlesnake. And as the dummy came closer to the snake, the researchers noted that its rattles became far more frequent.

While conducting their study, the experts realized that the snake’s rattling also responded to how quickly the dummy was moving. In other words, it wasn’t just the distance between the snake and the dummy that mattered. As Chagnaud explained to Science Focus, “In real life, rattlesnakes make use of additional vibrational and infrared signals to detect approaching mammals, so we would expect the rattling responses to be even more robust.”

And the researchers also looked at things from the perspective of humans. In this experiment, a sound device was hidden from view, and a person was asked to judge how far from them it was. The device replicated the frequencies of a rattlesnake’s rattling noise, and it ultimately showed that humans were tricked by the change in frequency seen in rattlesnakes.

In his concluding thoughts about the research, Chagnaud made a surprising comparison about the rattlesnakes’ noisy protective system. He said, “Snakes do not just rattle to advertise their presence, but they evolved an innovative solution: a sonic distance warning device similar to the one included in cars while driving backwards.” Yes, really!

While evidently impressed by this behavior in rattlesnakes, Chagnaud’s under no illusions about how it came to be. He sees it purely in terms of evolution, which is by no means an easy or simple process. In essence, as he explained to Science Focus, it comes down to trial and error.

Chagnaud said, “Evolution is a random process, and what we might interpret from today’s perspective as elegant design is in fact the outcome of thousands of trials of snakes encountering large mammals. The snake rattling co-evolved with mammalian auditory perception by trial and error, leaving those snakes that were best able to avoid being stepped on.”

See, rattlesnakes are definitely smarter than you think. They’ve found the best way to avoid getting attacked – by other animal predators or by humans. But sometimes the shoe is on the other foot. Sometimes, scary beasts get much too close to us for comfort...

It wasn’t an alligator lurking in the shadows of a Florida cellar. That would have been one thing – maybe even the expected thing in this part of the state. This... this was something else entirely. And as two men approached the beast in front of them, they knew they were in danger. The predator was at least 16 feet long and 165 pounds. But, even more terrifyingly, the intruder clearly wasn’t alone...

The pair who’d discovered the interloper knew they would need expert help in removing this beast. But when a specialist came to the house, he was also taken aback by the size of this thing. Even with his professional experience, the expert had rarely seen anything quite like this before. What were they going to do?

The predator wasn’t just deadly to humans, you see. It’s also a recognized threat to local wildlife. Its been known to devour possums, rabbits, bobcats and deer. And, alarmingly, a critter this size has the ability to tackle prey larger than even that. On one occasion, another of its kind was spotted feasting on a 7-foot-long alligator!

The two men first encountered this lethal specimen beneath a home on an island in Florida’s Everglades. And they ultimately decided to call in local conservationist Ron Bergeron. Ron’s work has earned him the moniker “Alligator Ron” – but his alligator expertise would do him no good here. Much different action was needed.

And whatever the men did, it wasn’t going to be easy. The beast confronting them had actually crawled underneath the floorboards of an old camp house. Plus, there was the small issue of the predator not being completely alone. So instead of rushing headlong into attack mode, Bergeron took time to contemplate his next move.

Another major thing concerning Bergeron was the geographical location of this beast. He’d seen other specimens in Florida, of course – but never this far north. In fact, he claimed that most of these creatures lived ten or even 20 miles south of where this one had made its home. That was bad news for the Everglades.

Why? Well, Bergeron was keen to impress upon Everglades residents that this predator was invasive. It simply did not belong in this area. And because the creature has such a big appetite, that means it will be a danger to much of the native wildlife. Considering the other animals that live here, this could be disastrous.

After all, Florida residents share the land with the area’s wilder inhabitants. Visitors may get a glimpse of manatees swimming in the waters, for instance, or bobcats and white-tailed deer roaming the pastures. Those with keen eyes may even spot members of more threatened species, such as the Florida panther or the American crocodile.

Many of the over 350 bird species native to the area are also incredibly rare. The large but graceful wood stork has been deemed by the U.S. government as endangered, for example. This wading bird casts an elegant silhouette and is beloved of both bird watchers and nature photographers.

Also registered on the threatened or endangered lists are the Cape Sable seaside sparrow, the Everglades snail kite and the red-cockaded woodpecker. Birds, however, are not known to be a threat to humans. So, what lurks in the Florida swamps that may pose a real danger to any person in the vicinity?

Well, although the West Indian manatee is perhaps the most distinctive Everglades resident, the placid mammal is more a gentle giant than a menace. These animals lumber softly through the water and may seek out humans both for company and a source of warmth. Manatees also mostly take their nourishment from aquatic plants. So they’re not something Bergeron has to worry about.

In fact, humans are much more of a threat to the manatee than they are to us. These sea creatures are so leisurely in their movements that they can prove vulnerable to passing dangers. For instance, they’re sometimes too slow to avoid speeding boats, which can maim or kill any animal in their paths.

And while the manatee is also on the endangered species list, arguably the rarest creature to be found in the Everglades is the Florida panther. These wild cats were once desirable trophies for hunters – meaning, unfortunately, that they were almost wiped out entirely. Conservationists believe that fewer than 100 of these animals now remain in their natural habitat.

Yet the same cannot be said of some of the other Everglades residents. The Florida black bear, for instance, is considered one of the most dangerous animals in the state. It is endangered, however, and members of the species are seldom spotted in the national park. So you won’t find this guy lurking in any cellars.

Many visitors to the Everglades may also be unaware that its waters may host sharks. Yes, there are some varieties – such as lemon sharks and blacktip sharks – whose body functions can adapt to the fresh waters of Florida’s swamps. And, unfortunately, they include one of the most dangerous species around.

We’re talking about the aggressive bull shark, which can sometimes be seen patrolling the Everglades’ channels as well as the mouths of rivers and cruise coastlines in search of prey. However, while these beasts are known to ambush humans, they typically prefer to feed on much tinier animals.

Elsewhere in the Everglades’ water, certain types of fish can pose a threat to humans. They can sometimes be attracted by anything eye-catching — such as jewelry — that swimmers may be wearing. This can provoke the fish into assuming that there is prey in the water. Marlins, meanwhile, are more of a danger to fishermen in the area.

Some underwater attacks may come completely by surprise, too. For instance, while the needlefish may seem relatively unassuming – typically coming in at around a foot in length and less than a pound in weight – its razor-sharp mouth is a hazard. And although this creature is not known as a human predator, it’s still capable of causing damage.

Needlefish usually travel close to the surface of bodies of water near the coast where it’s warm. However, if they’re fleeing predators or chasing their prey, they may “take flight” for brief periods and rise to the top. Anything that gets in the needlefish’s way, then, may just feel how sharp its mouth is.

Then there’s the box jellyfish – the ocean’s most venomous inhabitant. There are between 20 and 30 varieties of this creature, which can measure anything from under an inch to ten feet. Regardless of the box jellyfish’s size, though, it should definitely be avoided, as victims can die after experiencing the pain of its sting alone.

And perhaps the most famous Everglades predator is the alligator. The reptile can easily be confused with the crocodile, of course, although there is an easy way to tell them apart. Simply put, an alligator has a round, broad nose. Alligators are also more common across Florida, while crocodiles live only in the most southerly regions of the state.

Crocodiles can be just as vicious as alligators, too, although the American variety is less aggressive than many of its counterparts from around the world. And while alligators tend to strike only when they feel threatened, they should nevertheless be avoided as well. Bergeron and his team would be happy to avoid any of these!

In fact, the creature Bergeron discovered in the basement was itself a threat to much of the Everglades’ native wildlife. It was a breed of snake called a Burmese python — and one of its kind had once been reported to have swallowed an alligator whole.

At 165 pounds and around 16 feet long, the python was the second largest that Bergeron had ever seen. From nose to tail, the snake was merely a foot away from being the longest ever measured in the state. Perhaps most terrifyingly of all, though, the female predator was protecting a nest of at least 50 eggs.

And this frightening reptile was found underneath a house in Broward County that sits four miles from Alligator Alley. Alligator Alley is an 80-mile stretch of highway that dissects the Everglades National Park, and as its name suggests it’s a prime location for gator spotters. The native wildlife in the area is under threat, however, from the Burmese python.

The Burmese python typically has a placid nature, and – combined with its attractive skin – this makes the species a favorite among snake owners. But these snakes can grow quickly and can get incredibly large. Then, when they become too much for their handlers, they can become aggressive. Attacks, then, are not unheard of, and some have been fatal.

The snake’s diet consists purely of meat, with birds and small mammals primarily featuring on the menu. As the python’s vision isn’t too good, however, it relies on heat receptors lining its jaws and chemical sensors on its tongue to close in on its prey. And killing for the Burmese python is an act of brute strength.

You see, the Burmese python is a constrictor, meaning it will wrap its body around its chosen victim after having gripped it between its teeth. Then the snake will crush the breath out of its prey until it’s dead. And as the Burmese python’s jaws are so flexible, it’s able to gobble its meal up in a single piece.

Young Burmese pythons are frequently found in trees, although slivering up trunks become more awkward after they have matured. As these creatures can come in at around 23 feet and 200 pounds, however, they can practically be the size of a tree themselves. In fact, these snakes have been described as growing to as thick as a telephone pole.

So, all of this makes the Burmese python one of the biggest — and deadliest — snakes in the world. Even more alarmingly, the snake is an expert swimmer capable of remaining underwater for half an hour before coming up for air. But while this may make the Everglades’ swampland fertile ground for the species to thrive, there’s a problem.

Burmese pythons are native to Southeast Asia rather than the wetlands of the Florida Everglades. And while these reptiles were first introduced to the area over two decades ago when snake enthusiasts snapped them up, members of the species didn’t always work well as domestic animals.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, some of these pets escaped – or were released – into the wild. So the Burmese python is now considered an invasive species without any natural predators to keep the population in check. And owing to the snake’s appetite for native mammals, fauna in the area is now in peril.

In 2019 Bergeron explained to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, “The Burmese python poses a significant threat to the Florida Everglades by disrupting the natural food chain.” But the conservationist’s actions prevented an influx of this apex predator. As you’ll recall, the snake in the Broward County home was female and guarding a nest of around 50 eggs.

And, worryingly, a number of the eggs were actually cracking open as Bergeron surveyed the nest site. “With good fortune, we were able to find a large female and remove her and an entire nest of up to 50 baby snakes, which would have continued killing off our precious habitat,” Bergeron told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Interestingly enough, no license is required to hunt Burmese pythons, nor are there are no restrictions on when they may be pursued. Some have even turned the tracking of these snakes into a sport, with the annual Python Challenge encouraging members of the public to capture as many of the slithery pests as possible.

Local wildlife trapper Mike Kimmel – a self-avowed “python cowboy” – has proved himself particularly accomplished at ridding the area of the snakes. Competitors hunted 80 of the invasive species during the 2020 Python Challenge – and Kimmel bagged eight. Yet it’s made scarcely a dent in a population estimated to be in the tens of thousands in the Everglades.

Kimmel found the going hard, too. In a January 2020 Instagram post, he wrote, “I hunted ten days straight, covering thousands of miles of levees and woods [and] sleeping in the swamp when not hunting.” That said, the incentive to track down these snakes can be huge.

Those who hunt for a living can expect a return of a few hundred dollars in government payouts for every python captured. Then, once the snakes are euthanized, they can be used in other ways. For instance, Kimmel gives snake meat to the wild hogs on his property.

The Burmese python’s skin can also be used to manufacture luxury goods such as purses, boots and wallets. Typically, these reptiles have tan-colored outsides that feature dark patchwork similar to that of a giraffe. And while these markings are non-uniform, they nevertheless appear to slot together – much like elements of a jigsaw.

And as research has shown that a rise in python numbers has coincided with a significant decline in wildlife native to the Everglades, winning the battle against the snakes may be crucial in keeping this part of the state at its best. Only time will tell who emerges victorious...