What's Inside a Rattlesnake Rattle?

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Transcript

00:00This is a rattle from a rattlesnake.

00:06I've always wondered what's inside a rattlesnake rattle and how does it make sound?

00:13I thought they worked like maracas.

00:17If you take a maraca and look inside, there are a bunch of small bits that knock around to make sound.

00:25But I was wrong.

00:27Rattlesnake rattles don't make sound like maracas.

00:32Because let's take a look inside of this rattle.

00:36It's completely hollow.

00:39So it can't make sound like a maraca because there's nothing inside.

00:45Instead, watch closely.

00:47If I pull on the rattle, a piece comes off.

00:52It seems like the rattle can come apart in different sections.

00:58This one is made up of 16 different sections.

01:04Every time the rattlesnake sheds its skin, a bit of skin is left at the end of its tail.

01:12One of these.

01:14This bit of skin is added to the bottom of the rattle.

01:20That's how the rattle grows.

01:22But how do these rattles make noise?

01:25Look closely at this segment.

01:29It's cut in half.

01:31Notice, the previous segment fits neatly inside of it.

01:39Here's an image that shows a cross section of the entire rattle.

01:43One section is highlighted in white.

01:46Can you tell how the sections fit loosely inside each other?

01:50It's not snug.

01:52It's a very loose fit.

01:55This allows all the segments to wiggle around and move.

02:00Now imagine, if the rattle is shaken.

02:04Those segments can knock into each other over and over.

02:09Which makes a rattling sound.

02:12But not like this.

02:15This is not what a rattlesnake rattle really sounds like.

02:21Because rattlesnakes can shake their rattle much faster than I can.

02:26While this sounds like a rattling sound.

02:33Rattlesnakes can shake their rattle so fast it sounds more like a buzzing sound.

02:44And that's how rattlesnakes rattles make sound.