Rattlesnake Love | National Geographic

early spring in Mexico’s Sonoran Desert
when nature gives diamondback
rattlesnakes their wake-up call
they’ve spent the entire winter
underground in a cozy layer away from
cold and predators
now it’s time to head outdoors and feel
the warmth of the Sun
the females are free to bask to their
heart’s content
besides warming their bodies the Sun
helps their eggs develop as they get
ready to breed speaking of breeding the
mature males now have to fight it out to
see who gets prime access to the females
the male Rattlers perform a weird ritual
of one-upsmanship they stretch
themselves to see which one is the
biggest tallest and strongest this is a
fairly civilized ceremony considering
Diamondback venom inflicts everything
from extensive tissue damage swelling
and bleeding to death the rival doesn’t
measure up so he has to leave the
serpent King to his females the females
are rested and ready they’re resting
together the male checks him out to see
if they’re ready to breathe
this head rubbing courtship display
looks like he not only wants to be mr.
right but mr. right now
male and female can stay locked in
Congress for an entire day nor more over
all that time neither gets rattled and
after all this productive pleasuring
it’s time for a meal oh yeah
what haven’t eaten for five months yeah
no wonder they’re hungry a squirrel is
spotted and the snakes hemotoxic venom
incidentally poisons the squirrels blood
the Diamondback is careful to align
itself so it can swallow the head first
that way the limbs fold neatly and the
fur rugs the snake’s innards the right
way the Diamondback unhinges its jaws
this way it can swallow animals that are
many times bigger than its own skull one
final yawn and the rattler resets its
jaw
you