Squirrels wield a hot, secret weapon - life - 13 August 2007 - New Scientist

Squirrels wield a hot, secret weapon - life - 13 August 2007 - New Scientist: "It's Californian ground squirrel versus rattlesnake in a potentially lethal showdown. But the squirrel has a secret weapon that until now has remained invisible to the human eye. The ground squirrel heats up its tail then waves it in the snake's face - a form of harassment that confuses the rattler, which has an infrared sensing organ for detecting small mammals."