Southern Alberta could be alive with the sound of rattlesnakes this weekend: expert

Rattlesnakes are emerging from winter hibernation, after one snake expert reported a sighting earlier this week in the coulees around Lethbridge

If you’re planning to head to the coulees this weekend to enjoy the nice weather, don’t forget to look down.

That’s where there might be a few rattlers.

Lethbridge’s rattlesnake wrangler says he found his first rattlesnake of the season Thursday morning moving from its den.

This is the normal time the snakes begin to wake up and move around to search for food.

The Helen Schuler Nature Centre is reminding everyone who’s walking in the coulees to be on the look out. Stay on the trails and listen for the rattle – it’s a warning device the snakes use when approached.

“At this time of the year, the one thing that is a bit different is because they often hibernate together in the same area,” said Jessica Deacon-Rogers, of the Helen Schuler Nature Centre.

“You could have more than one snake in the same area, because they don’t tend to wander far from where they hibernated. We still have cool nights and they do sometimes need to go back into that shelter and protection when it is cold, so they haven’t dispersed or spread out very much yet.”

If you find a snake in the wild, you’re asked to give it space by slowly backing up.

However, if you do encounter a snake in an unnatural habitat, you can call the city’s rattlesnake line or visit the nature centre’s website.