An area man is recovering at a Sarasota hospital after being bit by a rattlesnake Saturday morning in North Port.

Earl Hjertsdedt told ABC-7 it happened just outside of the new Braves stadium at about 10 a.m. He said he was working to build a fence in the marsh outside the stadium when he got bit.

He needed 12 viles of antivenom and emergency surgery to save his leg.

There have been numerous reports of rattlers on the Legacy Trail. Animal contol experts are urging people to wear boots and long pants while in high shrubs.