Endangered Banded Rock Rattlesnakes have bred for the first time ever in Australia, in the Reptile House at Melbourne Zoo.

A male and two females born in New Mexico were imported from the Black Hills Reptile Gardens, and one female has given birth to two young.

This species is viviparous: they give birth to live young, rather than laying eggs.

The newborns of this species are venomous from birth.

They're carnivorous: in the wild they eat lizards, smaller snakes, and newborn rodents. 

In the Zoo's Reptile House, the young snakes are currently being fed tiny mice once every six weeks.  The feeding schedule will change when the weather warms up in spring, probably to a fortnightly feed.

Their native habitat is in mountainous areas of the southwestern U.S. and Mexico, from about 500m elevation up to 3,000m.  During winter months, they seek shelter in caves insulated from the cold.

With their banded and spotted markings, these small members of the rattlesnake family are ideally camouflaged for the rocky slopes where they like to bask in the sun.

Zoo reptile expert Jon Birkett says that this is a very exciting ‘first' for the Zoo, and that other Australian zoos will be interested in displaying this endangered species as the breeding program continues.

‘Banded Rock Rattlesnakes are one of the smallest rattlesnake species, and Zoo visitors can also see the largest rattlesnake species: the Eastern Diamondbacks.'