Thirty-six species of venomous pit vipers of the Americas, named for the rattle of interlocking keratin segments at the tail tip. They rarely bite unless provoked.
Quick answers
What is it?Reptile
Carnivore?Yes
Dangerous?Yes
Rattlesnakes cause the most snakebites in North America, but they rarely bite unless provoked, and treated bites are seldom fatal.
Domesticated?No
Awake when?Night
Its eyes and heat-sensing pits help it hunt warm-blooded prey at night.
Hibernates?Yes
Rattlesnakes brumate through winter, sometimes over 1,000 of them huddled together in underground dens.
Kept as a pet?No
Do people eat it?In places
Eaten in places, and said to taste "just like chicken".
At a glance
Found inNorth America, Central America, South America
HabitatDesert, Grassland, Scrub, Forest
ColoursBrown, Tan, Black
SizeMedium
LengthUp to 2.4 m (eastern diamondback)
LegsNone
Covered inScales
Lives alone
Lives for10–25 years
Can swim
In the wild
- Where it lives
- The Americas, from southern Canada to central Argentina.
- What it eats
- Small animals such as rodents and birds.
Did you know
Gains a rattle segment at each moult, so the rattle does not give its age in years.
Heat-sensing pits on its face let it “see” warm prey in the dark.
Often confused with
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