Timber Rattlesnake
Crotalus horridus • Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Viperidae, Subfamily: Crotalinae, Genus: Crotalus, Species: Crotalus horridus
Eastern United States, from southern New Hampshire to northern Florida, and west to southeastern Minnesota and central Texas.
Look up Timber Rattlesnake in the Snake Encyclopedia →Family
Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Viperidae, Subfamily: Crotalinae, Genus: Crotalus, Species: Crotalus horridus
Conservation
IUCN Least Concern (though many state-level listings range from Threatened to Endangered due to habitat fragmentation and persecution).
Physical Description
Large, heavy-bodied snake with keeled scales. Features dark brown or black crossbands or 'chevrons' on a ground color of gray, tan, or yellowish-brown. The tail is solid black and capped with a keratinous rattle. The head is broad/triangular with vertical pupils.
Size & Dimensions
Specimen appears to be an adult. Typical adult range is 36–60 inches (91–152 cm), with a maximum record of approximately 74 inches (189 cm).
Habitat
Primarily deciduous forests with rocky outcrops; also found in swamps, floodplains, and pine woods. Hibernates in communal dens (hibernacula) in rocky crevices.
Diet & Feeding
Specialized ambush predator primarily targeting small mammals (squirrels, chipmunks, mice) and occasionally birds. Uses heat-sensing pits to track warm-blooded prey.
Reproduction
Ovoviviparous (gives birth to live young). Females usually breed every 2–6 years depending on climate and energy reserves, giving birth to 5–20 neonates in late summer.
Conservation Status
IUCN Least Concern (though many state-level listings range from Threatened to Endangered due to habitat fragmentation and persecution).
Cultural Significance
Historical icon of the American Revolution (featured on the Gadsden flag); ecologically vital as a top predator in forest ecosystems and helps control rodent-borne diseases.
Notable Features
Distinctive solid black tail ('velvet tail') and the ability to maintain long-term communal denning sites used by generations of snakes.