Apparently, even a dead snake can bite. A Washington man said he was bitten by the decapitated head of a rattlesnake on his property in the city of  Prosser.

Danny Anderson and his son spotted the 1.5 metre venemous creature Monday evening while feeding horses. They pinned it with a pipe and cut off its head with a shovel. Then when Anderson went to pick it up, he said the reptile's head twisted around and bit his index finger. In the 10 minutes it took to reach a local hospital, where he had to be treated with shots, the venom had already spread through his body and his tongue had begun to swell.

A state Fish and Wildlife Department biologist said it's possible the snake had the heat-sensing ability to make one last attack or it may have been a reflex.

Photo Courtesy Getty Images/Gabriel Buoys - A rattle snake is seen in its exhibit at at the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle, Washington, 01 October, 2006.