♪♪ >> MILLS: [ Laughing ] You can see.

So, this is a little American alligator.

It's not a crocodile.

Okay.

Here we go.

Here's a couple more.

In fact, one of them just flew.

♪♪ ♪♪ [ Rattlesnake rattling ] The Low Country's home to lots of snake species.

Most are nonvenomous and harmless, but we do have a few potentially dangerous species, including three kinds of rattlesnakes.

So, let's get out in the field and take a closer look at these venomous but ecologically important snakes.

Today, we're out looking for the biggest rattlesnake species in the world, and this is Emily Mausteller, and she's a field biologist, and this is her master's project.

It's on what species?

>> MAUSTELLER: The eastern diamondback rattlesnake.

>> MILLS: And today we're gonna go out and try and track one, right?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

It's a pleasure to have you hear.

I'm so glad.

I'm glad that we get to go track a couple today.

>> MILLS: I am, too.

So, before we get out there -- and obviously I'm champing at the bit to go look for rattlesnakes, but before we do that, can you tell us a little bit about your project?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, so, the project began around 2008 when the Marine Corps here was interested in growing the forest.

So, that meant that a lot more Marines were gonna come through the depot, which means obviously many more human-wildlife interactions.

So, it kind of started in an aspect where we want to mitigate that as much as possible but also kind of figure out what's here, see what the population's like.

And overall, we're interested in looking at the population density, the survivorship, the reproduction of the species.

Again, it's a mark-recapture study, so once we find an individual, we mark it and then we actually go back and look for it on a weekly basis as long as the transmitter holds up.

>> MILLS: So, wait, you actually know where some of these snakes are and we're gonna go track them, right?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, so, I get to use this fun equipment, and we have radio transmitters on each of the rattlesnakes either internally or externally.

So, yeah.

I get to use these and track around the woods.

>> MILLS: Alright, good.

Let's go get them.

>> MAUSTELLER: Alright.

Let's go.

>> MILLS: So, I'm right behind, Emily.

>> MAUSTELLER: Okay.

Sorry.

>> MILLS: Just... Really do have to watch where you step, don't you?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yes, you do.

>> MILLS: You know, Emily, you know what's really cool about this is this habitat.

Now, I've seen diamondbacks in the past, but they've always been associated with sand hills, gopher tortoise burrows.

>> MAUSTELLER: Right.

>> MILLS: So this is -- This is really, really different habitat.

When I think of diamondbacks, this is not what I think of.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

They're kind of unusual in their habitat selection here.

That's actually what my thesis project is based on.

>> MILLS: I see fiddler crabs and all the sea ox-eye daisy.

>> MAUSTELLER: That's right.

♪♪ >> MILLS: Okay.

Yeah, a little higher and drier here.

>> MAUSTELLER: Right.

Yeah.

This might be like a transitional... marsh-edge type habitat.

>> MILLS: Of course, Emily, the one you're looking for is the one that maybe is not the one making the beeps, right?

'Cause there could be another one here.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, so keep your eyes peeled.

And right now, it's breeding season, so where you find one you're liable to find another.

>> MILLS: Here's one right here.

>> MAUSTELLER: Nuh-uh.

>> MILLS: Yeah.

Here's a little baby right here.

>> MAUSTELLER: No way!

>> MILLS: See it right there?

>> MAUSTELLER: Oh, my gosh.

>> MILLS: So, there's a little baby diamondback right... right here.

Emily, you think that's young of the year?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, that's definitely.

>> MILLS: So, this would've just been born.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, within the last couple weeks.

>> MILLS: Emily, they're so cryptic.

I mean, they just blend in so, so well.

And especially a little guy.

So, how big are these when they hatch out -- or, excuse me, when they're born?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, so that's about right right there.

They're, you know, roughly 10 to 12 inches.

I would say about a foot.

But they are born live from Mom.

That's where they get the name viper, Viperidae.

It means "live birth."

>> MILLS: Yeah, so it's live-born kind of in an egg that ruptures... >> MAUSTELLER: Right, exactly.

>> MILLS: ...as they're born.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, so, he's out here alone, which means that he already left Mom.

>> MILLS: So, do we want to catch this one?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

Let's.

He's very alert.

He's watching you.

>> MILLS: Look at that little... gorgeous little snake.

This is so cool.

>> MAUSTELLER: Good find, Tony.

>> MILLS: Okay, so what -- so, what's the plan for this little guy?

We weren't really expecting this one, were we?

>> MAUSTELLER: No, we weren't.

So, our goal is to get him back to our shed.

It's where we work up the rattlesnake.

And we'll just put a pit tag in him, so hopefully in the future we will catch him again.

And it's great when we find them as a neonate, which is what we call the baby, because then we can actually, like, appropriately age them.

>> MILLS: Oh, that's right.

And pretty much watch them for their entire -- hopefully watch them for their entire lives.

>> MAUSTELLER: Correct.

Yeah.

>> MILLS: So, I guess now we'd better find the one that was beeping, right?

>> MAUSTELLER: I know, 'cause he's still around.

>> MILLS: You getting the -- hearing the beep?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

Definitely getting closer.

>> MILLS: So, what do you think, Emily?

Right over in here somewhere?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

So, I can actually tell relatively how far we are from him based on the signal that I have.

So, each of their transmitters has a unique signal.

His was 845.

>> MILLS: And there's some directionality to this antenna, right?

So, if you point it, that's how you're telling what's where?

>> MAUSTELLER: Correct.

Yep.

>> MILLS: Alright, well, I'm looking.

[ Chuckles ] I'm keeping my eyes open.

♪♪ >> MAUSTELLER: Slight change of my angle.

>> MILLS: I don't see it yet.

>> MAUSTELLER: Oop.

Okay.

I think I do now.

Just had to change the angle.

So, he's a little difficult to see.

He's behind that tree in front of us.

So, normally we try to stay, you know, two to three meters away so that we're not doing too much disturbing.

>> MILLS: Oh, yeah.

Well, we don't need to -- >> MAUSTELLER: Right.

But for this purpose, just so we could... >> MILLS: Oh, wow!

>> MAUSTELLER: ...see the beautiful animal... >> MILLS: Boy, that's a nice-sized one, too.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

>> MILLS: That's a big animal.

So, Emily, how big's this snake?

>> MAUSTELLER: He's probably only about four, four and a half feet.

They're by no means a long snake, but they're pretty -- >> MILLS: They're meaty, aren't they?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

Meaty.

So, males are usually somewhat larger than females.

There's a little bit of sexual dimorphism.

On the island, it's a little less noticeable just because they are limited by factors such as, you know, prey items.

>> MILLS: The pattern looks so bright here.

>> MAUSTELLER: So, if you take a look at the... >> MILLS: Look at the rattle!

>> MAUSTELLER: ...rattle really quick, he actually has an internal transmitter.

That's why you don't see anything on his rattle.

>> MILLS: Okay, so he has -- This animal has a transmitter implanted inside it?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yep.

Yeah, so he slid off a little bit, but he's still around.

He's noticing that we're still here.

>> MILLS: So, the idea was crawl away at first.

If that doesn't work and we pursued a little bit -- Obviously we're keeping out distance, and now it's turning face.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

He might set up an ambush and, you know, show his big scary self, but... >> MILLS: Tell me a little bit about this individual snake.

>> MAUSTELLER: Alright.

So, this is a male.

His name is Thomas.

[ Rattling ] >> MILLS: Oh, it's rattling.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

>> MILLS: Oh, wow.

Look at that posture.

>> MAUSTELLER: So, now he's suddenly feeling threatened.

There's a lot of us.

There's only one of him.

We don't do this on a daily basis.

We normally just walk up to them, take their point, leave them alone.

So, we won't harass him more today, but it is cool to see how they behave.

>> MILLS: And there he goes.

He's crawling off.

So, what do you find that these animals are eating here on Parris Island?

>> MAUSTELLER: So, actually last year they had a little bit of a rough year.

But this year, they seem to be doing a lot better.

I've never actually witnessed, you know, something going down their throats, but we see a lot of marsh rats, rice rats, cotton rats.

>> MILLS: Do they eat any rabbits here?

>> MAUSTELLER: Historically, there were marsh rabbits here.

However, since about 2014, there's been no sign of them.

Whether that's due to anthropogenic causes or maybe the introduction of new predators, we're not sure.

But hopefully eventually someday we'll get some.

>> MILLS: Do they eat squirrels at all?

Will they eat a gray squirrel?

>> MAUSTELLER: They do, yeah.

If they can catch a gray squirrel.

We actually, in the past -- sorry, I keep hearing something over here.

>> MILLS: It's good, in case, to look behind you.

>> MAUSTELLER: It is.

Yeah, in the past, we also have a fox squirrel project here.

We've actually had a field biologist like myself tracking rattlesnake and, at the same time, another field biologist tracking a fox squirrel, and it just so happened that the fox squirrel was inside of the diamondback rattlesnake.

But that doesn't happen often.

It takes a pretty big snake to eat a fox squirrel.

>> MILLS: So, the radio -- Excuse me.

The rattlesnake that you're radio tracking caught and ate the fox squirrel that you were tracking?

>> MAUSTELLER: Correct.

>> MILLS: Bummer.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

>> MILLS: That's a little too bad.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

I mean -- >> MILLS: A win for the snake.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

A win for the snake, but not so much for the squirrel.

But, again, it has to be a pretty big snake to eat a fox squirrel, and that's not the norm here.

They're a little smaller than that.

>> MILLS: Okay.

Well, you want to go look for another?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, let's.

♪♪ >> MILLS: Okay, so, there's one in here, you think?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yes.

>> MILLS: You got a reading?

Deer flies are really bad here, aren't they?

>> MAUSTELLER: Oh, I killed it.

Okay.

Got it.

>> MILLS: Alright, well, lead the way.

Looks like pretty rough terrain in here.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, so just watch your step and make sure you're, you know, looking underneath the palmetto fronds.

♪♪ ♪♪ >> MILLS: So, do you think?

Where -- Where does it look like it?

>> MAUSTELLER: So, we're not too close to her.

She has -- Oh, sorry.

She has an external transmitter, so I usually estimate that they're, you know, a little farther 'cause the signal gets weaker.

>> MILLS: Got it.

A lot of dogfennel in here.

>> MAUSTELLER: Oh, yes.

>> MILLS: Looks like a pretty good place to hide, for sure.

There's a lot of cover here.

♪♪ So, Emily, what's the biggest diamondback you've ever seen on Parris Island?

>> MAUSTELLER: So, probably 5'4.5".

>> MILLS: Don't you think people have a tendency to think that all diamondbacks are seven, eight feet long?

And in reality, the biggest one ever caught was approaching eight feet long, I guess.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, didn't -- >> MILLS: And those are really rare, right?

>> MAUSTELLER: Right.

Yeah.

Here, their average is four to five.

Inland, it's, you know, up to six usually.

>> MILLS: But that's still a huge snake.

>> MAUSTELLER: That is a huge snake.

>> MILLS: Boy.

What a great looking stump hole.

Little bit of rain, Emily.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

They do like the rain.

I mean... >> MILLS: So, they'll still sit there even if it starts raining?

>> MAUSTELLER: Right.

I mean, unless it's a downpour and they get flooded out of their little ambush location, they'll probably stay.

Kind of a cooling mechanism.

Alright, do you see it?

Oh, she's trying to move now.

>> MILLS: Yeah.

Oh, right here.

I see her moving.

Okay, Emily, so she crawled.

Looks like she crawled right in there.

Wow.

Yeah, she disappeared kind of underneath this -- this -- all this thick grass.

I guess that makes kind of a nice little refuge for her.

>> MAUSTELLER: Right.

>> MILLS: This is a female, right?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yep.

>> MILLS: So, she's crawled right out from underneath.

And still that cryptic coloration makes her kind of hard to see.

So, how big's this snake, Emily?

>> MAUSTELLER: She's probably only about four feet.

>> MILLS: She looks a little lighter.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

>> MILLS: Lighter than the other snake.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

Their color does vary a little bit.

I've seen some really gray-phase ones.

I'm seen some more tan coloration.

Some very dark ones.

>> MILLS: So, they actively start to tongue flick quite a bit when you approach them like that.

So, this snake was very aware even when we got -- You know, even when we were a way's away, she knew we were here.

>> MAUSTELLER: Right.

Yeah.

[ Thunder rumbles ] >> MILLS: Well, looks like the weather turned on us, huh?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

Our snake didn't like it either.

>> MILLS: No, snake didn't like the rain and crawled off.

So, can we go back to the -- go back to the lab and look at some transmitters?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yes, definitely.

We've got two snakes to work up today, so we can definitely do that.

>> MILLS: One of the hazards of working outside, huh?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yep.

It definitely is.

>> MILLS: Feels pretty good, actually.

>> MAUSTELLER: It does, but the equipment's not so happy.

>> MILLS: Alright, well, let's get on back.

>> MAUSTELLER: Okay.

>> MILLS: So, we're out of the rain, but you have some snakes you want to work up, right?

>> MAUSTELLER: Correct, yeah.

So, yesterday, Allison, she's another grad student.

Actually, she just graduated.

She found her namesake snake.

She's been tracking her namesake snake, Allison, and just so happened to find a male with her yesterday, so they both actually need a new external transmitter.

So, that's what we have to do today.

>> MILLS: Okay, so are we gonna tube them?

Is that what we're gonna do?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yep.

Yep.

>> MILLS: Oh, that'll be cool.

>> MAUSTELLER: Very safe.

We're, you know, professionally trained, so, you know, it's one of those don't-try-this-at-home kind of deals.

>> MILLS: Okay.

Good.

[ Rattling ] ♪♪ >> MAUSTELLER: Okay.

♪♪ >> MILLS: This is an impressive snake.

Diamondbacks are impressive animals.

For sure.

The head on her.

I mean, the head on it's, you know, that long or so.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah.

>> MILLS: Notice I do that through the tube.

[ Chuckles ] Okay, so what are you guys gonna do with this one?

>> MAUSTELLER: Alright, so first we want to get his length, so we measure the snout to his vent.

That's a more accurate measurement.

And then we'll do his total length.

>> MILLS: Okay.

Emily, how old do you think this snake is?

>> MAUSTELLER: That's a good question.

It is a myth that -- you can't tell by the size of the rattle.

>> MILLS: Right.

So, not by number of rattles, but do you think it's at least 10 years old?

>> MAUSTELLER: I would say so, yeah.

It's healthy, it's large, it's long.

Our population is around that age, the 10-to-14 range.

>> MILLS: Feels like it's got really good body weight too.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yes.

Oh, he's musking.

He's trying to make everyone smell.

>> MILLS: I think it's an honor to be musked by a rattlesnake, a diamondback rattlesnake.

>> MAUSTELLER: There you go.

[ Rattling ] ♪♪ So she's just gently probing, just to make sure it goes in as far as possible so that our efforts were not for naught.

And that tag should be good for about 15 years, so hopefully it'll outlive him.

>> MILLS: So this one's ready to go back?

>> MAUSTELLER: Yep, he's gonna be really excited to go back home.

>> MILLS: You know, this is really an impressive snake, obviously, but they really do face some perils out there, don't they?

>> MAUSTELLER: Definitely.

>> MILLS: So, what are the sorts of things you worry about, like in terms of conservation of diamondbacks?

What sorts of things do you worry about?

>> MAUSTELLER: The first thing that comes to mind, unfortunately, is humans.

They get a really bad rep, but a lot of people don't recognize that they're really good for the environment.

They're basically pest control, and they can eliminate a lot of diseases that small mammals bring with them.

But a bigger portion of their decline is the loss of their native habitat, which is the longleaf pine ecosystem.

There's only about 4% of that remaining today, and I'm sure a lot of South Carolina residents are well aware of that.

But these guys are endemic to that, and their prey items are as well, so they face severe habitat loss.

So that's why it's really important for the remainder of the species to be conserved.

>> MILLS: I think the other thing to remember is they're not born this big.

>> MAUSTELLER: Correct.

>> MILLS: So, like that little one we caught, that's a lot more vulnerable than this great big rattlesnake.

So conservation is very important.

And as you said, it's just not fair for species to disappear just because they're inconvenient for us.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, it really isn't.

>> MILLS: And it's just not the same -- it's just not the Low Country without some rattlesnakes around, that's for sure.

>> MAUSTELLER: Very right.

>> MILLS: Well, I sure appreciate the research you guys are doing, and I especially appreciate you letting me come along today.

I love this stuff.

>> MAUSTELLER: Yeah, thanks so much for coming.

Thanks for taking an interest.

♪♪ >> MILLS: So we're out looking for pygmy rattlesnakes.

Now, this is the smallest rattlesnake species in the world.

And it wouldn't surprise me a bit to see one crossing a road like this.

The problem is, as the name would imply, they're little guys, so we have to drive slowly and look really carefully.

♪♪ ♪♪ Okay, guys, there's something right here.

Got to make sure you stop the car in time.

Guys, look right here.

And this is it.

It's a pygmy.

Now, this is the darkest -- my gosh.

I can't tell if it's in shed, but this is the darkest pygmy rattlesnake -- no, it's not in shed.

It's just really, really dark.

Now, this looks more like one that we would call a dusky pygmy rattlesnake.

And this is an adult.

These snakes are -- adults are never more than two feet long.

So 15 to 24 inches is pretty typical.

So this is an adult.

And the rattle is so minute that when they do rattle, it sounds like an insect buzzing.

And this one looks like -- a lot of times they're missing part of their rattle.

This -- boy, he's sitting here perfectly.

He or she.

I can't really tell by looking at it.

But little tiny rattle.

And, boy, I don't know if you -- those quick movements.

I mean, they are really feisty.

But again, this is defensive.

This is not an animal that wants to hurt you.

It's just an animal that's gonna protect itself.

You can see it's got some red.

Kind of a red stripe running down the back, and a pretty distinct pattern.

Now, pygmy rattlesnakes are extremely variable.

So there's a Carolina pygmy that lives more in the sand hills, and those tend to be brighter, sometimes almost a brick-red color.

And then there's the dusky pygmy that lives in more low areas, kind of the swampy areas, coastal plains of the state and here in the Low Country, and they tend to be much, much darker and not nearly as brightly colored.

They're real fidgety.

They do a lot of sort of moving the head around and moving the tail around.

And again, this is a venomous snake, so we've got to be careful.

And I'm well out of range of striking here, but, boy, I wouldn't want to get bit by one of these.

Probably wouldn't die from it, but it'd be very painful, lot of tissue destruction possibly.

Might even lose a finger or something like that.

So we don't want to take any chances at all.

Now, it is really humid out here, and actually it's starting to rain just a little bit.

You notice it has a rattlesnake head but a little different than your typical crotalids, you know, the bigger rattlesnakes, the diamondback and the canebrake.

It has a much small-- every time I move, he sort of pops his head over and gets a good look at me.

Now, because they're small, they eat small things.

They eat a lot of frogs, tree frogs, all kind of ranid frogs, leopard frogs and things like that.

They even eat insects sometimes.

Now, the babies are really small.

Typically they'll have five, six babies, sometimes more.

And the babies are so small when they're born, they can coil up on a quarter.

So just think how small that animal is.

And a lot of times the babies have feed on things like centipedes.

And of course really small frogs.

Anyway, neat little tail movements.

Okay, one of the really cool things that pygmies do is something called caudal luring.

And other vipers do this as well.

They'll take the tip of the tail, and they wiggle it.

And what's interesting about baby pygmies is the tip of the tail is kind of a bright yellow color.

Now, we see this in copperheads and cottonmouths and other species as well, but they use this to lure in frogs and lizards and things like that, and that's how they catch their food.

Now, adults do this a lot less.

And as you guys can see, it's started to rain.

But I'll tell you what, this is totally worth it.

Doesn't hurt to get a little bit wet, and we got a chance to see a pygmy rattlesnake.

So I'm gonna move this little guy across the road.

♪♪ ♪♪ So a while back I dragged this boat in the woods because we had a hurricane coming up, and I wanted to make sure it didn't blow around too much.

Yesterday I came out here to drag this back into the boatyard, and when I did, I picked it up very carefully, and underneath is something absolutely amazing.

And I'll bet it's still under here.

And it is not.

Son of a gun.

Yeah, I think he may be right here.

I think he's... Guys, so I'm -- I don't see this, unfortunately.

But I'm being really careful.

And, wow, I think it's right -- right where I'm holding it.

So I guess what I'm gonna have to do is flip this boat over, but I want to be really careful how I do this.

Use the handle.

I'm gonna come over here.

Sure enough, there he is.

Look at this.

Oh, my gosh.

Check this out.

This is an awesome animal.

Look at that.

[ Snake rattling ] Wow.

I don't like where my hands were, but I really wasn't expecting it.

So this is called a canebrake rattlesnake.

Now, I'm gonna really carefully see if I can pick this -- this snake's pretty riled up and rattling, but I'm gonna see if I can pick it up and put it -- whoa!

Little strike in there.

I'm gonna see if I can get it in the boat so we can have a look at it.

Wow!

This is a great big adult.

About as big as this species gets.

Now, I think what happened is, I think since we're in some of the cooler months, I think what happened is this snake is spending the winter right here.

There may be a hole underneath the boat or some stump hole that it can crawl into.

And in this case, it crawled right underneath the lip of the boat.

That was kind of exciting.

But anyway, it obviously has a place to be able to withstand really, really cold temperatures, 'cause we do get an occasional freeze here.

Okay, the first thing you notice is the rattle, and this is one of the rattlesnakes.

And these guys don't always rattle.

This is one that's a little more active than I'm used to.

Okay, the rattle is kind of interesting, and probably what it is is defense for the snake.

If you think about it, there's a real chance of some big animal stepping on a rattlesnake because it can't see it.

So why not rattle, make some noise, and that way you don't get stepped on?

Of course it protects the animal that might accidentally step on it as well.

Some real characteristics of this species -- the canebrake rattlesnake -- is this rusty stripe down the back.

And wonderful pattern.

This is so cryptic.

This animal on the forest floor is so hard to see.

And of course that does a couple things -- protects the snake from predators, and also, more importantly, it allows it to stay hidden so that when a prey species -- something like a mouse or squirrel -- comes close enough, doesn't see the snake, wham, it gets bitten, and then the snake can eat it.

You'll notice, between the eye and the nostrils, a heat-sensitive pit.

And that's what this animal can use to find prey.

Even if it's pitch-black out, it can detect a thermal signature of a mouse or a rat or a squirrel or something like that and then strike at it with pinpoint accuracy.

So that pit's really important to help locate prey and to help catch prey.

Now, a couple other things.

This snake has vertical pupils, so the eyes -- has a round eye, but the pupil itself is vertical, and that's true of a lot of nocturnal species.

All the pit vipers would have that vertical pupil.

Now, the venom in this species, the canebrake rattlesnake, has heavy hemotoxic components that destroy blood and muscle tissue, but it also has some other toxins as well, including some neurotoxins.

So the bite from one of these is very dangerous.

And if you're every bitten by any venomous snake, especially a big rattlesnake, you got to get to the doctor as quick as possible because it's very definitely a life-threatening emergency.

[ Rattling ] Now, one of the real concerns about all rattlesnakes, canebrakes included, is that there aren't nearly as many as there used to be.

And of course people are very scared of them, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be here.

This is a species that belongs here, it's important for the ecology around here, and we need to have rattlesnakes.

Alright, I'm gonna get this guy out of the boat so that I can flip this boat back over and kind of restore his little microhabitat here.

Wow, this is an impressive snake.

Also I think we'll get a pretty good idea of how camouflaged they are.

Boy, they pretty much just disappear.

I'm well out of range here, but if I was to get closer, like up in here somewhere, there's a chance that this snake would strike.

Now, remember, this is all defensive.

This snake does not want to bite me.

Because if he does, he uses precious venom that he needs to use to catch food.

And if he has an altercation with a big animal, he might lose.

Okay, I'm gonna drag this boat back over where it was.

[ Snake rattling ] [ Chuckles ] Keep my eye on the snake, obviously.

And I think we can get this snake to go right back where he came from.

And I think maybe it'll crawl right back underneath the boat.

Now, this boat is out in the middle of the woods, and I think I'm just gonna leave it here.

I want to leave the snake alone, and obviously it's chosen to spend the winter here.

So I think it'll be just fine here.

But when you're flipping boats or anything like that, you got to be real careful where you put your hands because there could be something under it.

I was just kind of glancing around.

This is beautiful habitat, not only for canebrake rattlesnakes but for the prey that they like -- rat species and squirrels and things like that.

I can understand why a rattlesnake's doing well here.

♪♪ A lot of people don't like the idea of having rattlesnakes around here, but it's actually a good thing.

And although some of these species can be potentially dangerous, they're ecologically very, very important to the region.

And besides, there's something really exciting about having rattlesnakes right here in the Low Country.

Thanks for joining us on "Coastal Kingdom."

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