THE RATTLER SEASON.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 139, 13 June 1936, Page 9 (Supplement)

THE RATTLER SEASON.

ITS COMMERCIAL VALUE.

MEAT CANNED AS DELICACY.

SNAKES ARE TAKEN ALIVE,

The rattlesnake season is now open in Arizona. Officially there is no closed season on rattlers, but in November they go into hibernation and do not appear again until the desert sun awakens them. Spring arrives on time in Arizona; they are about again, and the few people who make a living out of capturing them are at their tasks.

The most famous rattlesnake hunters in Arizona are three young brothers. They have been in the business for some time and find it lucrative and —strange to say —not dangerous. None of them has ever been bitten.

These snakes are not sold to zoos and no one buys them as pets, but there is in Tucson a company that turns then) into commercial products, and snake hunters receive their reward. Not onlj' is the meat of rattlesnakes canned, to be served as a delicacy—usually as a hors d'oeuvre with' cocktails—but there are by-products which, taken in the aggregate, are even more important. Neckties, buckles, buttons and jewellery are made from the skins. The proprietor of this company is a woman.

The three brothers who open the rattlesnake season have captured as many as 200 snakes in three days. They take them alive, for to stone them or break their skins might render them valueless. Tlte job is not a hard one, for the rattlesnake, in spite of his evil name, is considerate. He warns you not to molest him and refuses absolutely to retreat —and thus aids in his own capture. He coils and rattles and stands his ground. A net over his head and you have him.

There is one town in the rattlesnake belt where the curator of reptiles at the zoo announces in the local paper that fried rattlesnake will be • served at a certain hour, and the number of people who will show up to eat their ration is surprising. The snakes are slaughtered before the eyes of the diners and put on the grid.

The rattler is rather a fat member of the snake family. While sizzling away he looks tasty, but he really lacks distinctive flavour, and the promise of a gastronomic treat is not fulfilled.