A respected snake researcher who had been making significant discoveries about the species since childhood has died after being bitten by a timber rattler. John Sealy, a rattlesnake researcher from Stokesdale, North Carolina, who knew Martin for more than 30 years, said Martin was perhaps the foremost authority on timber rattlers, a species he studied since childhood. Age can also be a factor in a person’s susceptibility. “They save their venom for their prey,” he said.