SACRAMENTO (KPIX 5) — The big rains have jolted the snakes out of hibernation.

Experts say there is no doubt that some of the reptiles are getting caught up in the floodwater which means more snakes could be found near flooded creeks or streams in a populated area.

The rattlers typically like to hang out on the edge of the water.

“If they’re hibernating up out of the inundation, they’re probably going to be fine. And if they’re in the inundation, well of course they’re going to be flooded out. And they’re either going to drown or they’re gonna wash downstream to some new location, says ” Mike Cardwell of the Effie Yeaw Nature Center in Carmichael, California. .

So the rattlesnakes may turn up in places where they usually roam in warmer months.

Normally they tend to avoid people but they can bite if provoked.