Mysterious Venom of Mojave Rattlesnake

Guest: Jason Strickland, Post-doctoral Researcher, Department of Biological Sciences, Clemson University One of the most toxic snakes in the North America is the Mojave Rattlesnake, common in warm western deserts. Its venom has long been interesting to scientists because of how potent it is, and also, because Mojave rattlesnakes have different types of venom depending on where they’re found. One version paralyzes the victim, causing organs to shut down. The other results in massive internal bleeding. Needless to say, both are bad news. What evolutionary biologist Jason Strickland is trying to figure out is why some snakes have one venom and some have the other.