Timber Rattlesnake

• These snakes prefer moist lowland forests and hilly woodlands or thickets near permanent water sources such as rivers, lakes, ponds, streams and swamps where tree stumps, logs and branches provide refuge.
• Timber rattlesnakes are found in upland woods and rocky ridges in the eastern United States; the eastern third of Texas.
• Second largest venomous snake in Texas and third largest in the United States
• Adult timber rattlesnakes reach a length of 3 feet
• Timber rattlers, like other pit vipers, do not lay eggs. Instead the eggs are kept inside the female’s body until they are ready to “hatch.” The egg have an estimated incubation time of six months
• Litters consist of between five and 20 young, which are 10 to 17 inches long
• Young may remain near their mother for seven to ten days after birth, but no parental care is provided
• Timber rattlesnakes live up to ten years
• Although diurnal (active during the day) during spring and fall, timber rattlesnakes become nocturnal (active at night) during the oppressive heat of the summer
• Highly venomous, timber rattlesnakes are sometimes slow to defend themselves and rely on their ability to blend into their surroundings to avoid confrontation
• They seek to escape rather than risking danger and will remain silent, and if possible, will hide before revealing their position to a predator. Despite their large size and reputation, they are difficult to provoke into rattling or biting. Still, it does happen.
• According to popular belief, one can tell the age of a rattlesnake by the number of rattles present at the end of its tail. A baby rattlesnake is born with the first segment of its rattle, called a “button”. As the snake grows (and with each molting of its outer skin) an additional segment is added to its rattle. Younger snakes shed more often than older snakes, but on average, free-ranging snakes may molt three to six times a year. Another clue to a snake’s age is its color: timber rattlers darken as they age, and the darkest are old males

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