![]() In the northern part of their range, their regional classification varies from threatened to endangered. A closer look at its status in parts of its range reveals a more nuanced situation for this species. A current, long-term monitoring study may change their status. In the winter, they hibernate in crevices found on the ground or slightly underneath.Īs of a 2007 analysis, timber rattlesnakes are listed as a species of least concern on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List. These snakes are largely terrestrial but are amazing climbers and have been found in trees at heights of more than 80 feet. Throughout their range, timber rattlesnakes seem to be less common in cities and suburbs. Canebrakes are found in swamps, the higher lands of river floodplains, and farmlands. Those found in lower elevation areas, such as the Piedmont (a geographic region extending from New Jersey to Alabama) and the Atlantic Coastal Plain are called canebrakes. Generally, those found in the western and higher altitude parts of its range are called timber rattlers. Timber rattlesnakes live in a variety of habitats, including mountainous or hilly forests, hardwood or pine forests, swamps and river floodplains, lowland cane thickets, and agricultural fields. This species is regionally extinct in Canada and threatened in several other parts of its range. Historically, they were also found in southern Canada and Maine. Timber rattlesnakes can be found as far north as New York and as far south as northern Florida. Their range extends from eastern Kansas, Texas, Iowa and central Wisconsin to Georgia, the Carolinas, West Virginia, western Virginia, Pennsylvania and New England. Timber rattlesnakes have a wide distribution across the eastern half of the United States. However, timber rattlesnake bites are rare. A timber rattlesnake bite is a medical emergency. Like other vipers, the timber rattlesnake is venomous with venom potent enough to kill a human. Though it may strike if necessary, the timber rattlesnake is more docile than other members of its family and is more likely to stay coiled or stretched out, motionless when encountered in the wild. The sound serves as a warning before the snake strikes. When threatened, it props itself up and shakes its rattle, which presses the buttons together producing a rapid, crisp rattling sound. ![]() Loose sections of the tail made of keratin (the same substance as human hair and fingernails) form the characteristic rattles or "buttons" at the tip of the timber rattlesnake's tail. This distinct pattern and coloration helps the timber rattlesnake camouflage among the vegetation on the ground. This stripe is orange, yellow or pinkish in some timber rattlesnakes, while others have a brown or black stripe.īoth morphs, or variations in color, have darker or black coloration at the tip of their tail and dark stripes that form a chevron pattern along the back and sides of the snake. They are gray, sometimes with a pinkish hue and have a stripe down their back. These large, heavy pit vipers vary in coloration.
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