The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1879-04-02
RATTLESNAKE'S DINNER.
Tho Monthly Meal Prepared for.the Inter.
estinK Reptiles Mt tho New York Aqua.

4 RATTLESNAKE'S DINNER.
Tho Monthly Meal Prepared for:the Inter
estinE Reptiles Mt tho New York Aqua
rum.
A New York paper says: Poisonou
snakes very seldom take food in captiv
ity. Of some species, no specimen ha
ever been found that would do 80. A
q rule, they obstinately starve them
selves; sometimes living for nine o.
even twelve months without eating
growing gradually weaker, day by day
until they finally die. The rattlesnakt
is not that sort OF a snake. He is prac
tical, ready in adapting himself to cir
cumstances, and if he is hungry, is Sc
because nothing digestible is at hand tt
be killed and swallowed.
Mr.. Bergh objects to snakes being
fed with living animals. So when the
rattlesnakes' monthly meal time comes
he is never an invited guest. An houl
was chosen when there were no strang'
ers in the aquarium. and the dinner was
served. A large, fat rat was put in the
cage of rattlesnake about three feel
long. The rat manifested cheerful in.
difference to the situation, that was nc
doubt based on the happy delusion that
it's companion was simply harmless big
worm. It trotted unconcernedly over
the outlying sections of the snake,
peered down among the coils for some
thing to eat, and stared with innocent
surprise and curiosity at the upraised,
loudly.rattling tail. Its Dcnchalance
actually seemed to aston, Il the snake,
and caused him to hesitate about open
ing hostilities against such cool Gus
toner. That situation was maintained
for five minutes. All that time the rat
tiesnake's warning notes were sounding,
and. it lay coiled with it's neck curved
ready to strike, and it's eyes fairly blaz-
ing with malignant ferocity. At last it
struck at the rat-and missed. The rat
seemed to think nothing more of the oc-'
currence than that the worm wanted to
change its position and was somewhat
in hurry about it. There was no ap
parent alarm, but only an access of curl
osity in the mind OF the frisky rodent
about. the quivering, whizzing tail, to
satisfy concerning which he walked de-
liberately up to it and smelled 1t. As
he did 80 the snake struck again, and
that time caught his victims left hind
leg. A horrible thing the rattlesnake
was in that moment of pouncing upon
his victim. The flat, broad head was
opened into an enormous mouth; in the
widely1distended jaws the large, hook
ed, venomous fangs were erected; the
eyes glowed with fury. Quicker than
sight could follow the motion, the dead
ly blow was inflicted. One instant the
snake was motionless, the next it's fangs
were fastened in the leg of the strug-
Cling, squeaking, and now thoroughly
alarmed rat, and the next it had return
ed to it's former attitude, still threaten
ing, but simply following with watohful
eyes the movements of it's victim, with
out essaying any further attack. The
frightened rat lost instantly the use of
the leg that had been struck. On it's
other three legs it sprang about as if in
wild terror, then dragged itself around
the cage more and more slowly; atlength
it crawled among the coils of the snake
and there expired. Thirteen minutes
elasped from the time it was bitten until
it was dead.
Almost Immediately the snake pro-
ceeded to the swallowing process.
There was no preparatory moisteniDg,
coiling upon and pressing of the body.
The snake simply seized the rats head
in his mouth, and commenced opera
tions. His upper jaw is built in two
sections, right and left, and he can
move them separately, backward or for
ward. Hooking the teeth of one section
into the rats hide, he would slide the
other section forward q little and take q
fresh hold with his teeth. Then the
first that made fast would let go, come
to the front, and rig a new purchase.
In that way, by alternate advances Of
the right and left sections of his upper
jaw, he slowly pushed his dinner down.
Put it took him twenty minutes to do it.
Several other rats were fed to the rat
tlesnakes with little variation of Incl
dent, except that their individual char
acteristics were yariously displayed.
None was as unconscious of danger and
impudently sociable as the first, and
none was as plucky as the seventh,
which, upon receiving the fatal bite,
sprang at the snake to make fight. The
poison was too active in the courageous
little fellows veins, however. Even as
he reached the reptiles neck his limbs
stiffened, his jaws became set, and he
rolled over on his back, weakly kicking
and gasping for some minutes, and then
died. The quickest death was that of
the fourth rat, which was bitten in the
head, fell Immediately, and was SEEM
ingly dead in less than minute.
DR.. Dornor, who knows almost as
much about snakes as if had made them,
explains that as soon as rattlesnake
has eaten in captivity, the quantity and
activity of it's poison increases, quickly
causing the interval between the bite
and its fatal result, upon small animals,
al least, to become very short indeed.
But if fed too often the reptiles venom
loses in activity, so that sometimes sew
eral bites are insufficien to kill.