Michigan rattlesnakes face uncertain future

Walking out in the wetlands?

If you hear a sound like a loud bee buzzing, look down, not around.

It could be Michigan’s only venomous snake, the Eastern Massasauga rattlesnake.

But the 2- to 3-foot, well-camouflaged reptile is not likely to be a threat to nearby humans.

Instead, it is moving towards threatened status itself. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service last month recommended that the snake be moved to the threatened species list, starting a review that will take as long as a year.

The decline in numbers has been spurred by both habitat loss and the fact that people fear them, said Jennifer Moore, professor of biology at Grand Valley State University. She’ll give a talk about the snake on Thursday at Fenner Nature Center in Lansing.

“A lot of people are not crazy about having them in their back yards,” she said. “There was a time when they were pretty heavily persecuted.”

The snake once was a common wetlands dweller in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Ontario, Canada. Loss of habitat and killing by humans has led to declines in every state.

Michigan may have the most rattlesnakes remaining.

“Michigan is the stronghold for the species,” Moore said. She’ll give a talk about the snake on Thursday at Fenner Nature Center in Lansing. “If you look at a range map of Massasauga rattlesnakes, Michigan is just dead smack in the middle.”

Michigan is home to 18 varieties of snake. The garter snake is most common, spread across both peninsulas. The Massasauga rattler has been found throughout the Lower Peninsula.

The average Massasauga is about 2 feet long with a thick body, heart-shaped head and vertical pupils. The snake is grayish-brown to gray with a camouflage pattern; its tail has several dark brown rings tipped by rattles. Female snakes give birth to 5 to 20 young in late summer.

During the winter, they hibernate in wetlands, usually in abandoned crayfish tunnels or small animal burrows, said Hannah Schauer, wildlife education technician for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. During spring, summer and fall, you’ll find them under logs or trying to conceal themselves in wetlands or in drier nearby areas.

“They have excellent camouflage, which is their main defense,” she said. “They are not an aggressive snake.”

The mostly eat mice, small amphibians and insects, but they’re prey as well as predator. Herons, eagles and some small mammals will eat them.

One or two people are bitten by the snakes each year, but there hasn’t been a fatality for decades, according to the DNR.

“They’re not really that aggressive,” Moore said. “I’ve worked with these snakes for years and you can almost step right on top of them before they even start rattling. They would really rather just hide.”

The best way to avoid being bitten if you do hear that buzzing nearby: Don’t try to handle them. Instead, move slowly away.

Moore said putting the species on the threatened list could be a good step towards its survival. Another: working to preserve its habitat.

“Support wetlands conservation. That’s the best way to help,” Moore said.

If you go

"Michigan's Massauga Rattlesnakes," presented by Jennifer Moore, assistant professor of biology at Grand Valley State University

7 p.m. Thursday at Fenner Nature Center, 2020 E. Mt. Hope Ave.

Sponsored by the Capital Area Audubon Society; learn more at www.capitalareaaudubon.org