CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A “mega-den” of hundreds of rattlesnakes in Colorado is getting even bigger now that summer is over and babies are being born.
Through live video, scientists studying the den on a steep Colorado hillside are learning more about these enigmatic and often misunderstood reptiles. They watch the young, called pups, slither over and between adult females on lichen-encrusted rocks.
The public can also watch the RattleCam project on its website and participate in important work, including telling snakes apart. Since the researchers went online with their remote camera in May, several snakes have become known in a discussion forum and to scientists by names such as “Woodstock,” “Thea” and “Agent 008.”
The project is a collaboration between California State Polytechnic University in San Luis Obispo, snake removal company Central Coast Snake Services and Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.
By involving the public, scientists hope to dispel the misconception that rattlesnakes are generally fierce and dangerous. In fact, experts say they rarely bite unless threatened or provoked, and often the opposite is true.
Rattlesnakes aren’t just among the few reptiles that care for their young. They even care for each other’s young. Adults protect and provide body heat to young from birth until they hibernate in mid-fall, said Max Roberts, a CalPoly graduate student researcher.
“We regularly see what we like to call ‘babysitting,’ pregnant females that we can see have visibly not given birth yet, but are sort of babysitting the newborn snakes,” Roberts said Wednesday.
Up to 2,000 rattlesnakes spend the winter at this private site, which researchers keep secret to discourage intruders. Once the weather warms, only pregnant females remain while the others disperse to neighboring territories.
This year, scientists monitoring the Colorado site have been able to watch rattlesnakes coil around themselves and scoop up water to drink from cups formed in their bodies. They’ve also observed how the snakes react to birds that swoop in to try to snatch a scaly meal.
The peak of summer is in late August and early September, when rattlesnakes give birth to their young over a period of about two weeks.
“From birth, they know how to move in the sun or shade to regulate their body temperature,” Roberts says.
There are 36 species of rattlesnakes, most of which live in the United States. They are found in nearly every state and are particularly common in the Southwest. The species studied are prairie rattlesnakes, which are found throughout much of the central and western United States, as well as Canada and Mexico.
Like other species of rattlesnakes, but unlike most snakes, rattlesnakes do not lay eggs. Instead, they give birth to live young. According to Roberts, an average clutch size is eight young, with the number depending on the size of the snake.
Roberts studies the effect of temperature changes and the sun’s ultraviolet rays on snake behavior. Another graduate student, Owen Bachhuber, studies family and social relationships among rattlesnakes.
The researchers watch the live stream all day long. Beyond that, they get help from up to 500 people at a time who log in online.
“We’re interested in the natural behavior of rattlesnakes, free from human disturbance. What do rattlesnakes actually do when we’re not around?” Roberts said.
Now that the Rocky Mountain summer is cooling off, some males are returning. By November, the solar- and battery-powered camera will be off until next spring, when the snakes reemerge from their “mega-den.”
