Don’t judge a snake by its rattle: rattlesnakes in the Americas.

The rattle is obviously a warning but the language of retreat and hiding is obviously non-threatening. Rattlesnakes seem to say, “I don’t want to fight but if you make me, I’m prepared to defend myself.”

There are at least 32 species of rattlesnakes and 83 subspecies, divided between the two genera of Crotalus and Sistrurus.