Rattlesnakes were a group of venomous snakes native to the planet Earth. They received their name for the rattle located at the tip of their tails used as a warning device when threatened.
In 2365, Commander Riker joked that the Riker family was so ornery that his great-grandfather was once bitten by a rattlesnake, and that after three days of intense pain, the snake died. (TNG: "Shades of Gray")