TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – That unmistakable sound of a rattlesnake\u2019s tail is one of the desert\u2019s most feared warnings, but some Arizona residents believe we may be hearing it less often. <\/p>\n
And they think humans are to blame.<\/p>\n
The theory goes like this: when we kill the snakes that rattle, we let the quiet ones survive, which leads to more \u201csilent\u201d snakes over time. It sounds like a scary example of evolution in real time, but is it true?<\/p>\n
Brian Hughes, owner of Rattlesnake Solutions, says there\u2019s simply no evidence that\u2019s happening.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no evidence that says that that\u2019s happening at all, and it wouldn\u2019t be able to happen that fast even if it were the case,\u201d Hughes said. \u201cWe haven\u2019t been here that long. Evolution takes longer than that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hughes says most rattlesnakes don\u2019t rattle to begin with.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the wild, they rarely rattle,\u201d he said. \u201cThe majority of rattlesnake encounters that a person\u2019s going to have out there are going to be ones that they never even know about.\u201d<\/p>\n
Just weeks ago, former Pima County Sheriff Mark Napier was bitten by a rattlesnake while golfing. He said it never made a sound before striking. Hughes says that behavior is common.<\/p>\n
\u201cSometimes they\u2019ll skip the posturing part, especially if someone puts their hand right on it while they\u2019re reaching for a golf ball. They might just go straight to a bite.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tom Weaver, curator of herpetology at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, says humans are the ones moving into rattlesnake territory \u2014 not the other way around.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything that we\u2019ve built in the desert is basically built on their habitat,\u201d Weaver said.<\/p>\n
He argues killing snakes isn\u2019t the answer.<\/p>\n
\u201cI consider North American rattlesnake to be probably the most persecuted animal on the face of the earth,\u201d Weaver said.<\/p>\n
Weaver adds that rattlesnakes bite as a last resort.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey don\u2019t know what you are. They\u2019ve probably never seen a human. All they want to do is not be with you and get away.\u201d<\/p>\n
As for the evolution theory, Weaver says some rattlesnakes on remote islands have evolved to lose their rattles \u2014 but that process takes tens of thousands of years, not a few decades of Arizona housing developments.<\/p>\n
Experts say never assume a rattlesnake will rattle before striking. Watch where you step and where you put your hands. Don\u2019t reach blindly into brush, rocks, or golf course rough. If you see a rattlesnake, call an expert to remove it \u2014 don\u2019t grab a shovel.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe best saying I\u2019ve heard is kill ignorance, not rattlesnakes,\u201d Weaver said.<\/p>\n
Weaver says killing a snake just makes room for another. To actually reduce snake encounters, eliminate resources like water, shelter, and food such as rodents from your property.<\/p>\n