Researchers track snakes to study populations, behavior

Timber rattlesnakes like this one are turning up in subdivision yards and brush thanks to developers who are invading the snakes’ turf.A researcher for Washington University in St. Louis, colleagues at the Saint Louis Zoo and Saint Louis University are tracking timber rattlesnakes in west St. Louis County and neighboring Jefferson County. They are investigating how developing subdivisions invade the snakes’ turf and affect the reptiles.