318 



NATURAL HISTORY. 



from the eye to the angle of the mouth. There are two large black bands which begin behind 

 the head and run along the neck and back for some distance. The nasal plates are very 

 small, and the space between the orbits is covered with plates or scales, larger than those in the 

 others. 



The Missouri Rattlesnake* is slim, and is from two to three feet long. They inhabit the 

 countiy bordering on the Rocky Mountains, and from the Mexican to the British boundaries. It 

 is found from California to Utah, but the Yellowstone is its favourite locality. Crotalus lucifer 

 is found in Arizona and in the Pacific region. 



The Prairie Rattlesnake, or Massasauga,t is distributed in the Prairie countries from Ohio and 

 Michigan westward, and it does not appear to go farther westward than the Yellowstone. They 



HORRID RATTLESNAKE. 



prefer an unproductive soil, where their sluggish gait may not meet the opposing obstacles of 

 grass and mud; and for their hiding-places they seek the holes of the Prairie Dog (Cynomys 

 ludoviciana). It has some large plates on the head, and the rattle is much smaller than in the 

 other Rattlesnakes, and is included in the genus Crotalophorus (Gray). There is also a small species 

 in the south, J which hides in grass and feeds on field mice. 



Coues, the American naturalist, thus writes about the rattle : '* The purpose subserved in the 

 economy of the animal by this singular organ has been the subject of much speculation and dis- 

 cussion. It is difficult to perceive what use the rattle can be, either in procuring prey or 

 avoiding enemies. We do not know that it comes into play at all in the pursuit of prey, while 

 the actual result of its use as a menace in self-defence is the reverse of beneficial to the Serpent, 

 since the sound serves to direct and provoke attack from all enemies which the animal has occasion 

 to fear." 



" The principal enemies of the Rattlesnake besides man are hogs, peccaries, and deer. The former 

 * Crotalus conflucntus (Say)=<7. lecontei. f Crotalophorus tergeminus (Say). J Crotalophorus miliarius. 



