Thinks hes a rattle snake

The other day i accidentally woke up my corn when he was sleeping and he rattled his tail like he was a rattlesnake. I just wondered if anybody else's snakes had wierd behaviour.

Thats Mimicry, imitating a rattle snake, in order to scare off predators, both animals come from the same areas

thanks, lol.

I thought he just wanted to be a rattlesnake

Mine has done the same, only when he's super agitated. It's pretty cool to see that little tail whizzing back and forth.

they do it so quick though. its super fast.

Metal_luke666 said:

thanks, lol.

I thought he just wanted to be a rattlesnake

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Little do you know that he has multiple personalities... Anyway, I've seen my corn do this before. I've also heard that this is common in the wild, as many snakes will crawl over leaves or thump their tale to imitate the sound of a rattlesnake.

Wait until the first time you have a 600+gram corn do the tail rattle then reach out and grab you. It'll scare the pants off you. Then you'll understand why it works so well in the wild. LOL

My okeetee did this once when i was taking her out of her feeding tub. She doesn't do it anymore because she has gotten used to me. I also switched to a feeding tub with lower sides so I could pick her up from the sides and not over top of her.

bekers71 said:

Wait until the first time you have a 600+gram corn do the tail rattle then reach out and grab you. It'll scare the pants off you. Then you'll understand why it works so well in the wild. LOL

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lol, cant wait :spinner:

My okeetee does that when ever its feeding time.

Striker just did this last night actually while I was feeding him and Maize..I fed him first..then when I went to feed maize I accidentally banged into his feeding cage with my elbow..suddenly I heard this fast rattling noise and a small hissing sound...I looked at him and was like "Yea..cause I REALLY want your mouse for dinner.."..lol..The last time he rattled his tail was the first night I got him..Maize has never done this or hissed...She is so sweet..Sythe has also tail rattled while it was feeding time and has even bluff struck at the glass..

Vyv really doesn't like this white towel i use either. whenever i used to quickly give the glass a wipe and a clean, he'd strike for it. he hated it.

My pewter rattlesnake never stops doing it lol

TWGarland said:

Thats Mimicry, imitating a rattle snake, in order to scare off predators, both animals come from the same areas

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Actually (this is one of the aspects of snake evolution I find the most fascinating!) before rattlesnakes had rattles, many snakes employed the fear-threat response of tail-rattling. As the vipers were evolving fangs and heat pits, they no longer needed to be slim athletic snakes and became heavy-bodied ambush predators. These snakes lived in places with cover- near water and in forests. They were unable to utilize the food supply out on the prairie because they had no defense against the huge herds of bison and were too heavy to escape quickly. Sure, they had venom, but it wasn't much of a defense if the snakes got trampled trying to use it. They solved this problem by developing a loose-fitting column of hollow scales at the tip of their tails. Predators and grazing mammals learned to stay clear. The effectiveness of this new defense is inferred by the presence of more than a dozen rattlesnake species in the western plains, while there are no rattleless pitvipers there. Unfortunately, in the last hundred years, this defense has been the downfall of the rattlesnakes, because a rattler that warns humans away is nearly always killed.

Paraphrased from Snakes of Florida by Alan Tennant

thank you for the information. That was quite an interseting read.

Snakes have got to be the most incredible animal on the planet though. There so interesting. Way they move, eat, have evolved. its incredible.

my snow zora has rattled his tail at me, it startled me the first time i heard it, since he was in his feeding tub, and his tail rattled against the walls of the tub. eventually i realized what the sound was. i think he was angry that i was blocking the light, my shadow scared him i think. hasn't done it since though. although the amel at my store ALWAYS rattles his tail when i go to take him out of his tub.

milly has yet to rattle her tail at me, but she's so little and sweet right now...wonder if she'll stay that way?

Don't know if any one else has noticed this but I've observed that tail rattles and strike poses seem to be done more by the males. Out of all the corns I have there are only 2 females that display this behavior. But they are babies. On the other hand there are plenty of males of different ages that do it. Some even go as far as to actually strike at me. Of course it never "scares me away" and they get picked up any way. lol

my little girl millicent has only struck at me once, andit was just a warning strike. but yes, my male (i think) has tail rattled and the one at the store is male too. i wonder how much truth there is in this theory?

well i dont know about the females because i only have the male. But he does get into the striking position when he doesn't want to be picked up. He has striked out a few times, but not many. Hasn't bit me yet tho.

Eight of my 15 snakes rattle. It's nearly always feeding-related. Some always rattle, some seldom rattle. Of these eight, 6 are female, two are male. Of the seven that never rattle, four are female, three are male.

Three of six babies rattle. Five of nine adults rattle.