Hobbies And Interests
The Eastern Diamondback
The eastern diamondback gets its name from the prominent, dark diamond-shaped markings, outlined in bands of cream-colored scales, trending down its back. The rest of the body is drab: brown-green, dusty gray or nearly black. The arrow-shaped head is streaked with a kind of war-paint: two white lines that angle away from each eye with a dark sash in between. Between the eye and nostril is the heat-sensing pit that betrays this snake's membership in the pit-viper subfamily, which includes most of North America's venomous serpents. The rattle at the end of the body is a cluster of modified scales that rasp against one another when the snake vibrates its tail. A young diamondback has but one rattle, called the button, and progressively adds a new segment with each shedding of skin.
Size
Adult eastern diamondbacks typically run between 33 and 72 inches, or about 3 to 6 feet (1 to 2m). But they are known to grow substantially longer, though, as with many snakes, their maximum size is a matter of some debate. The longest eastern diamondback reliably measured was 8 feet long (2.5m); such a snake might weigh 10 pounds (4.5 Kgs). In "Rattlesnakes: Their Habits, Life Histories and Influence on Mankind" (1997 edition), Laurence Klauber mentions historical records of snakes allegedly as long as 8 feet 9 inches (2.7m). The only rattlesnake of comparable size is a close relative, the western diamondback, which rarely approaches 7 feet in length (2m).
Ecology
A serpent as big, powerful and well-armed as the eastern diamondback has no trouble preying on mammals as big as rabbits, which indeed are among its favored food items. Rodents and birds are other common targets. Eastern diamondbacks roam pine flatlands, those savannas and woodlands covering large acreage in the Southeast. They frequently hole up in the leaf-strewn shade of the saw palmettos and cabbage palms common to the pinewoods understory. They are also sometimes encountered in hardwood hammocks, and even swim to offshore barrier islands and keys.
Reputation and Importance
The impressive size of the eastern diamondback is enough to make it legendary in the Southeast, and it is certainly considered a highly dangerous snake because of the quantity and potency of venom it can inject. But while diamondbacks often hold their ground when confronted with humans, they are not typically aggressive: That deafening rattle in the underbrush is a warning, not a battle call. Often persecuted because of irrational fears, eastern diamondbacks serve a critical ecological function as a check on populations of rodents and rabbits.