We came upon this South Dakota Badlands rattlesnake.  Lucky for us but unlucky for the snake, previous sightseers had the encounter and killed the serpent. Do not know if the human or the rattlesnake was the predator. What I do know is the rattlesnake lost. Humans even cut off his rattlers. Would the snake have slithered off to safety if given enough time and personal space?  Something to think about…….  I  know I would have quickly returned to my vehicle and given the rattlesnake all the space he wanted!!!

Remember…We humans are just visitors to the wildlifes’ homes in the national parks .