Abilene residents are expressing concerns about snake activity after a 1-year-old boy was hospitalized from a rattlesnake bite.
The Abilene Reporter News reports that the toddler is recovering after being bitten on the hand by a 1-foot-long rattlesnake while playing outside his home in Abilene Tuesday.
Taylor County's game warden James Cummings says he's been fielding more calls about rattlesnakes recently. He says increased snake activity is linked to a growing rodent population, the reptile's food source. Cummings says heat is another factor since snakes try to find shade and cooler spots in the summer months.
Rattlesnakes are born in the summer, particularly in July and August.
Abilene Animal Services Director Mirenda Walden says there hasn't been more snake activity in one area of the city over another.
