[pct-l] rattlers

[treerings at gmail.com]

I'm forwarding this from the CDT-l. I hope you find it as helpful as I did.
Unfortunately, it doesn't recommend how long a rattler should be cooked.
(Sorry if cross-listed.)

Just my two cents on rattlesnakes- Snakes are blind just prior to shedding
their
skins when the spectacle which is the translucent scale that covers their
eyeball turns milky during this time they remain quiet unless disturbed.
Once
the skin is shed they can see clearly and begin to move about again. Snakes
also
shed their skins on a variable schedule which varies with their food
intake.
Fast growing snakes-ie those who are ingesting alot of prey items-shed more
frequently. Rattlesnake venom causes tissue necrosis, swelling and sloughing
of
tissue in animals as well as red blood cell abnormalities and low platlets
which
can lead to problems.The mojave rattlesnake adds in a neurotoxin as well,
which
is what the coral snake has. Most reptiles are the most active they will be
during the mating season and after summer moonson rains. The aggressiveness
of
any individual rattlesnake is a function of its species and its body
temperature. Most importantly rattlesnakes are not out to bite humans but
are
biting defensively if you inadvertantly place your hand or foot too close.
Thank
goodness they do rattle as a warning. I have had rattlesnakes rattle from a
distance of 20 feet or so or as I almost stepped on one not seeing it but it
did
not strike. A cold diamondback youngster I encountered in November in a
pocket
of cliff did not even move much less rattle when I had placed my hand in a
hold
and drew up even with it on a bank on a cold day in Bandelier National
Monument
in NM. Rattlesnakes eat  tremendous amounts of rodents and are an essential
part
of the ecosystems they occur in. They are never out to bite humans except
in
self defense-Hollywood movies to the contrary. Plastic