A rattle from the past.

This is a rattlesnake's rattle. There are about thirty species of rattlesnake, most of them in the Genus Crotalus from the Greek word krotalon meaning "castanet". The snake uses the rattle to warn off any cowboy, horse or other large animal that comes too close for the snake's comfort. Some 40 odd years ago a friend brought this rattle back from a Boy Scout Jamboree in the USA. I coveted the rattle and he coveted my rather natty deer-stalker's hat, and so we swapped! I think I was robbed!

The rattle consists of an articulated series of modified scales from the tail tip. Each time the snake sheds its skin, a new segment is added to the rattle.