snake facts

7/24/2019 Snake Facts

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Snake Facts

Why do snakes shed their skin? A snake iscovered with scales, which are composed of a

material similar to human fingernails andprotected by a thin layer of skin. As a snakegrows the skin stretches, becomes worn andneeds to be renewed by a shedding process.The frequency of shedding depends on therate of growth. Some snakes may shed everycouple of weeks while others may only shedonce a month. The shedding process takesseveral days. The first step is the formation ofa new layer of skin beneath the old one.During this time snakes will become grayishor bluish in color. Its eyes will turn very blueand the snake has difficulty seeing. Snakes

often remain in hiding and refuse food until ithas shed its skin. Snakes shed their old skin inone piece starting from the head, and turningthe skin inside out as it crawls out of the skin.Many times a snake will soak itself in water

just before shedding to assist with theshedding process. The shed skin stretches

making it longer than the actual snake. Aftershedding a snakes coloration is bright and itshines. It also hunts for food immediately aftershedding.


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Why does a snake flicker its tongue? Asnakes tongue is a forked sensory structureused to explore its surroundings and help it

find food. As the tongue flicks in and out it ispicking up air-borne particles and tastingthem.

Are snakes slimy? Snakes are not slimy butrather they are dry to the touch. They appearwet because of their smooth, highly polishedscales.

A healthy outdoor environment teams with avariety of animals. Each animal plays a role inthe total picture, including snakes.

Snakes do not usually travel very far. Mosthave specific habitat and range.

In general, snakes like cool, damp, dark areaswhere they can hide out during the hottest

time of day. During the early part of the daythey may move into a sunny spot to warm up.Snakes are most active at dusk and early inthe morning. During new construction, naturalhabitats are disturbed and snakes are forcedto move into new areas. Snakes are especiallyattracted to fire wood stacked directly on the

ground, old lumber piles, junk piles, flowerbeds with excessive mulch, weedy gardensand boards or other items lying on the ground.


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{{{{13. Crush the head of a snake after killing it -

It is capable of attacking with a severed head

Superstition says that one should crush thehead of a snake after killing it otherwise its kinmight find an image in its eyes and seekrevenge. In fact the reason is that a snake canbite or kill a person even with a detached

head. And in order to completely neutralize it,it is necessary to crush its head. Also, being acold-blooded organism, even if some of itsvital organs stop working it will stay alive forhours and die a slow and painful death. So it isrecommended to crush its head to give it aquick and painless death. }}}}

MYTHS OF SNAKE

1. There are many superstitious beliefs regardingsnakes in India. As against the popular belief

snakes would neither hurt nor rush after human

beings to bite them. Snakes attack only when

humans accidently step on them or when they get


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the feeling that they are attacked by human

beings.

2. Yet another superstitious that prevails among

people is the belief that snakes drink milk. The realfact is that snakes hate milk and it is scientifically

proved that when snakes are forced to drink milk

they get sick.

3. It is falsely believed that snakes can listen to

music. Snakes never dance to the tune of the

snake charmers. In fact snakes cannot hear themusic it is the movement of the snake charmer

that forces the snakes to follow a particular

movement.

4. It is believed that the female species of the

Cobras don't exist and that Cobras usually mate

with species of other snakes. This is not true andthe fact is that Cobras only mate with its own

species.

5. Yet another popular belief is that snake's take

revenge and that snakes when hurt would

definitely come back to take revenge. It is

scientifically proved that the brain of a snake is notmuch developed therefore it has absolutely no

memory to take revenge.

6. Another false belief is that a bite received from a

snake in water is not poisonous but the fact is that


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venomous snakes either when bitten on land or on

water is equally poisonous.

7. After summer showers there is a belief that

snakes would come out of their holes to eat thesand but this is not true. Snakes don't come out to

eat the sand dust, they actually come out to

maintain their body temperature. Snakes cannot

control their own body temperature.

8. Pythons are believed to squeeze and crush the

bones of its victims in its own ring beforeswallowing them but the true fact is that Pythons

only suffocate their victims to death. A dead victim

is enough for the Python to swallow its prey. 9.

Another mysterious belief is that if a snake bitten

person in turn bites the snake the poison would go

away from the body of the victim. If the victimtakes the risk of biting the snake the snake would

only attack the victim again and this would only

result in the snake injecting all its poison into the

body of the victim which would in turn result in the

quick death of the patient. (It is observed that

victims who bite the snake get their mouthdecayed)

10. If the head of the Cobra gets cut then there is

a belief that the cut part of the snake hood would

fly and bite the victim. Even though this is not true


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the cut part of the snake hood for some time after

being cut has the power to give an intense bite.

11. For some species of snakes there is a wrong

belief that the poison resides in its tail. There isalso a wrong belief that when such varieties of

snakes bite they inject poison through their tail into

the body of the victim but for certain snakes there

is a small projection seen on their tail which is

poison less and till now no snake is scientifically

proved to have poison in its tail.12. The belief that snakes have supernatural

powers but this is not true and the belief that

Golden coloured snakes have diamonds in their

mouth is just but a fantasy.

13. Yet another myth is that snakes fall in love with

women are known as true snakes and if thesesnakes are hurt they would in turn cause the ruin

of the family. There is yet another superstitious

belief that some snakes when hurt would result in

causing leprosy to the individual.

14. The belief that highly venomous snakes would

hang themselves upside down from tress and thatthey would come down only after the death of the

victim is also a mistake.

15. The belief that in the olden days famous

ayurvedic physicians used their magical powers to


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bring the snake which bit the victim back to the

victim and once again made it (snake) to bite the

victim, so as to take the poison away from the

body of the victim is not true. Also the belief thatphysicians involved snake treatment would

towards the end get the curse of snakes and

would end up as Leprosy patients is also not true.

98% SNAKES DIE AFTER DRINKING MILKFriends this is to inform you that feeding milk to

any snake is injurious to the snake.. Snakes are

Carnivore and can not digest Milk as milk is a

vegetarian Diet..

Snakes lack the ability to detect color and taste so

they may drink milk feeling that it is water, But

actually it kills the snake.

Specially for indians who feed milk to snakes on

Nag-Panchmi,

This is to inform you that snakes can not Digest

Milk and this causes infection to the Digestive

system and Ulceration,

THE SNAKE DIES AFTER DRINKING MILK,

because of the Infection or we can call it Luctroce-

intolerence in medical terminology

Snakes and common misbeliefs


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Snake means death! It is amazing to find foolish and

utterly absurd misbeliefs like this and many more about

this misjudged creature. Compelling folklores,stories,

myths and legends have us convinced. Below are thesome common beliefs about snakes.

1.It is totally eroneous to believe that snake bites canbe cured by mantras, mantriks,magic spells roots

and herbs.Do you know that in our country about

25,000 people die playing fools to such beliefs?

Anti-Venom is the only cure for the snake bite! The

other remedies are useful to relieve fear and treatshock, but should never be substituted for or

interfere with the anti-venom treatment. Snake

bites are cured only when timely treatment is

rendered to the patient. Mantriks casting spells,

using snake stones to suck out the venom,

Naagveli, kinds of oil, ash etc. are all futile. The

snake stone is merely a benzoin or a gall stone, andhas no effecton the venomous bite.

2.Snakes are revengeful.There is no scientific basisto this. A snake's brain is not developed to the

extent of retaining memory. It is said that if you kill

a snake, another (its mate) will follow you and take

revenge. That, of course is wrong, but may have

some basis in fact. When you kill a snake it expelsits musk from the anal opening; it is very possible

that a nearby snake may show up to investigate

what the musk (a sex - attractant) is all about.


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3.Snakes guard wealth.This is a common misbelief.Old crumbling houses, 'wadas' are ideal for snakes

as they find plenty of hiding places together with

rats and mice. In the days of yore, people oftenburied their wealth and it could be a possibility that

a snake and the hidden wealth were unearthed

together, giving this impression.

4.Old snakes have hair on them. Hair does notgrowon snakes. Periodically snakes cast of moult and if

some moult remains, it appears like hair.

Sometimes some snake charmers even stick hair

onto the snake's head.

5.5. Snakes hypnotize. This is believed to be sobecause snakes stare fixedly as they do not have

eyelids and cannot blink.

6.Snakes sway to the music of the flute. Thismisbelief has been strengthened by our ever

popular but ludicrous Hindi films. Even though it is

now proven that they can detect some airborne

sounds, there is no evidence that snakes can

appreciate music. Snakes are said to dance to

music. While playing the flute, the snake charmer

sways and the snake moves to the swaying

movement. It is the natural instinct of the snake to

keep a close track of any moving object. In fact

they instinctively stay away from artificial

vibrations.The music of the snake-charmers only

serves to charm the audience.

7.Cobras, particularly the king cobra, are supposedto wear a 'nagmani' that makes one a


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millionaire.The poor Irula tribal snake-catcher has

a good answer to the legend of the jewel or light in

the head of the snake. When asked about this

belief, an Irula will reply, " if it was so we wouldbe rajas not snake-catchers."

8.Snakes suck milk from a cows udder by coilingaround its legs. This is not true.Milk is not part of

a snake's natural diet. Where they would find it in

nature, how they would obtain it with no powers of

suction and with over hundred sharp teeth in the

way, and of what nutritional value a few spoonfuls

of milk would be to a snake, are questions that

should be considered.

9.Sand boa bites cause leprosy.The blotches on theskin of the sand boa have given rise to this notion.

Since this harmless snake has a body pattern that

vaguely resembles that of patients suffering from

this dreaded disease, people are quick to make this

association. Actually, snakes are clean and free of

disease.

10. A green tree snake pierces a man's head withits pointed head. The vine (common green whip)

snake is accused of poking one's eyes out or

`stinging' one on the forehead. Actually, the

pointed nose of this harmless snake is soft and

rubbery.The vine snake can inflict a painful(but

harmless) bite on the finger or even on the nose,

but no one has ever received an eye injury.


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11. Snakes like the sweet pungent smell of thekevada or the raat-ki-rani. This is an

unprovenstatement.

12. A small snake of Kashmir is supposedly sodeadly that it melts the snow it passes through !13.14. The tails of rat snakes, despite various stories

about them, are no more dangerous then pieces of

rope and so not have stingers, do not suffocate

cows, lash down paddy and so on.

15. Bites by a snake with rings on its body, doesnot give the victim's body a ringed pattern.

16. In north western India, kraits are supposed tosuck a man's breath away as he sleeps.This is

perhaps the farmer-labourer's explanation for the

respiratory paralysis that a severe krait-bite brings

on.

17. In Maharashtra, the little earth bound sawscaled vipers are believed to jump through the air

for six feet or more. Six inches would be more

accurate.

18. Cobras are believed to mate with rat snakes,but they in fact mate with only their own species

and generally keep away from the larger and

sometimes cannibalistic rat snakes.

19. The red sand boa has an extremely blunt tail;thus there are several popular stories about `two

headed snakes'. Just as it fools the mongoose and

other predators into attacking its tail while the head


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seeks escape, a large percentage of humans are also

fooled.

20. Pregnant women loose their eyesight if they

see a snake. This is not true.21. Snakes hold their own tail in their mouth, forma coil and chase people. Snakes use their tails as

whips.

22. Pythons suck their prey from a distance.

Many of our old traditions respect flora and fauna.

These sacred traditions had a meaning and were

observed thoughtfully. For example, worshipping the

banyan tree during vata poornima, or worshipping

bullocks. But somewhere down the line, these traditions

lost their meaning and became plain ceremonies and

rituals. The very next day after worshipping the

bullocks we are cruel to them or we cut down the

beautiful banyan tree that we worshipped!

Similarly,Nag Panchamiis celebrated with fervor. We

perform a puja, pay obeisance to the snake only for that

day and the next day if it crosses our path we are scared

to death and kill it. Due to lack of proper information,

misbeliefs and fears, many important species of flora

and fauna have become rare and are threathened withextinction ; consequently, disturbing the natural cycle of

coexistence. Rampant killing of the snake has led to

enormous increase in the number of rodents, which in

turn destroy food grain. Records indicate that about 26


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% of food grain produced in the country every year gets

destroyed due to rodents. The number is likely to

increase if the number of snakes continues to decrease

at todays pace. Legal restrictions can control thedestuction to some exent. The Wild Life Protection Act

of 1972 passed by the Government of India has

included all Indian snakes in the list of animals to be

protected from being killed. The Act also bans sale of

items made from snake skin. Exceptional import

licenses are issued, but strictly for scientific purposes.Snakes will continue to be killed until we all learn to

observe these rules.

Nagpanchami And OtherMyths Abt Snakes

In India, snakes are worshipped from ancient

times. Lack of scientific knowledge about snakes,

fear and because snakes consume the rats which

helps the farmers are some of the probable

reasons why this tradition may have beenestablished. In many Indian epics there are a lot of

examples of stories about snakes. These

superstitions and the misunderstandings were

deeply rooted in the minds of common people


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because of 'valuable' contributions made by snake

charmers who is more or less a juggler and the

Indian films. In addition to this, nowadays satellite

channels are also doing the same. Those peoplewho believe that they are educated do carry some

misunderstandings in their mind about the snakes.

If we have to make our society prosperous and

healthy we must test these superstitions and

misunderstandings on a logical and scientific

background. In this article, we are going to take anover all view of some misunderstandings about the

snakes.

Snakes Drink Milk :

Snakes are cold blooded and carnivorous animals,

whereas milk is often consumed by the mammals.

Before the 'Nag-Panchami' for many days the

snake charmer does not give any water for

drinking to his snake. Because of this the snake

drinks the milk which is offered on the day of 'Nag-

Panchami' to satisfy its hunger and thirst. But if the

milk is not digested then the snake dies. Thus by

forcing the snakes to drink the milk we areindirectly killing them on the day of 'Nag-

Panchami'. If we provide Pepsi or Coca-Cola for

drinking, instead of milk, snake will drink it.


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Divine Vision of snake on the day of 'Nag-

Panchami' :

On the day of 'Nag-Panchami' many people in the

rural areas offer milk and some type of grains

(Lahi) on the snake's hill. On such occasions, if the

snake comes out of the hill because of some

reason or because of wetness of milk, people feel

that snake has given them the divine vision and

some of them go forward to offer Haldi and Kum-Kum. If the snake is without poison then its ok.

Even if it bites nothing will happen. But if the snake

happens to be poisonous then one may have to

loose his life. We know that today is the day of

'Nag-Panchami' but the snake is unaware of this,

for the snake all days are alike.

Snake dances when the charmer/juggler plays the

Been or Pungi :

Snake does not have any hearing or acoustic

organ in its body. In other words snakes do not

have ears. They are totally deaf. When the

charmer plays his Been or Pungi he is giving a

particular motion to the Been or Pungi. The snake

is giving a defensive response to this and it is not

responding to the music played on the Been or


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Pungi. Snake can not hear any sound, which is

propagated through the air. If we hold a black cloth

in between the snake and the Been we will see the

snake is not dancing and this is sure.

Snake take revenge :

We often hear myths like if the snake escapes

from human attack, then it takes revenge or if we

kill a male snake then the female can take

revenge. The snake has an undeveloped brain. Soits memory is also very weak. Snakes can not

keep in its mind any event or any person in

particular. Therefore the snake which escapes

from human attack or a female snake whose male

is being killed can not perceive a particular person.

Physical description

Snakes range in length from Anacondas and Pythons, 25

to 30 feet long, way down to a 2008 discovery in

Barbados whos only abo!t " inches long #the Barbados

$hreadsnake, %e&toty&hlo&s carlae'( $he weight range

for snakes r!ns from 0(002 &o!nds !& to 500 &o!nds or

more #Anacondas'(

)(S( snakes generally range between 8 inches and *

feet( $heir coloration is highly varied and &rotects them(

As with other animals, their color and &attern is


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Ears- Snakes dont have eternal ears( $hey also lack

an eardr!m and some of the other internal str!ct!res

common to mammals( .nstead they have a small earbone called the col!mella( ro!nd vibrations are

transmitted to the col!mella thro!gh skin, bone and

m!scle, delivering a so!nd &attern( Snakes also &ick !&

so!nd waves thro!gh the air, b!t &robably dont hear

these so!nds as well as a h!man does(

Nose- Snakes have a nose and nostrils they draw air

thro!gh( .ts their &rimary method of detecting smells,

b!t not their only one(

Tongue- All snakes have a forked tong!e, and whats

with all that flicking in and o!t they do6 ell, as it t!rns

o!t, theyre tasting their environment, incl!ding !s ifwere nearby( $hey !se their tong!e to sam&le chemical

molec!les in the air which they draw into their mo!th

for identification by a s&ecial organ named the

vomeronasal organ, or 47acobsons organ(4

)ni!e to re&tiles, the 7acobsons organ is located on

the roof of the snakes mo!th, where o!r soft &alate

wo!ld be( $his organ has chemical rece&tors that are

each s&ecialied to receive only a s&ecific ty&e of

chemical( ssentially this is what the snake is doing with

his tong!e- 9e flicks it o!t thro!gh his 4li&s4 and waves


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between layers of skin that softens and se&arates them(

9e moves to a safe hiding &lace and sto&s eating( $he

inner s!rface of the o!ter skin li!efies, allowing it to

se&arate from the !nderlying new skin( 9e sheds his oldskin all in one &iece by first r!bbing his head against a

ro!gh s!rface to make it &eel( $hen he s&ends !& to

several ho!rs crawling forward o!t of the skin, leaving it

inside o!t, like a dirty sock laying on the floor( $he brille

sheds, too, leaving the snake vis!ally im&aired or even

blind for a few days, d!ring which he stays hidden( $he

snakes body now has bea!tif!l new skin( $his &rocess,

called molting #ecdysis', occ!rs as often as needed,

&erha&s as often as every three weeks or as long as

once or twice a year( $he faster the snake is growing,

the more often he sheds his skin(

$o!ch a snake and hell feel cool( $his is beca!se snakesare cold/blooded= they cant generate body heat

#ectothermic'( $heir body tem&erat!re is the same as

the tem&erat!re s!rro!nding them( .f the air aro!nd

him is "0 degrees, hell be "0 degrees, too( 9!mans

have a relatively constant body tem&erat!re of aro!nd

8(* degrees, so a snake will always feel cool to o!r

to!ch, !nless hes been basking in the s!n on a >00

degree day( And, thats not likely- $hey &refer

tem&erat!res in the mid/80s( .n hot weather theyre

inactive, hiding o!t where they can stay cool( Snakes

reg!late their body tem&erat!re by moving in and o!t of


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s!n( hen the tem&erat!res start falling at the end of

s!mmer, snakes become more visible, s&ending more

time in the s!n to warm !&( $his is when theyre most

likely to be seen by !s(

Since snakes also dont like it to be too cool, in winter

they hibernate( $hey generally crawl into caves or holes

in the gro!nd below the frost line, sometimes in large

gro!&s( hile hibernating, they dont eat and they move

very little( Some snakes ret!rn to the same den year

after year( 9armless and common, garter snakes are

very cold hardy and among the last snakes to hibernate

in the fall( .n s&ring, males leave their den first and the

females follow later(

Movement- .f a snake is cornered by a h!man, hell

become frightened and e&ress it by hissing andshaking his tail( $ra&&ed, he may advance as a bl!ff to

try to scare the individ!al away( .f that fails, he may

event!ally strike( A snake can strike abo!t half the

length of his body(

Snakes have fo!r main methods of moving( $he S/

sha&ed, 4ser&entine4 movement is the most common(

$he snake accom&lishes this by contracting his m!scles

and thr!sting his body side/to/side( 9e moves himself

forward by &!shing against resistance &oints, s!ch as

rocks and branches( .n water, the S/movement easily


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moves abo!t( $he males follow it !ntil they catch !&

with her( A male begins co!rting by crawling all over her

and b!m&ing his chin on the back of her head or flicking

her body with his tong!e( 9e aligns his body with hersand wra&s his tail aro!nd her( hen shes ready to

acce&t him, the female raises her tail to e&ose her

cloaca #klo/A/k!h', which is the &osterior o&ening

thro!gh which the intestinal, !rinary and genital d!cts

em&ty( Cating commences and semen enters the

females body thro!gh this o&ening( Cales, !ni!ely, are

do!bly endowed( $hat is to say, they have two &enises,

called hemi&enes, which are hidden when not in !se(

Cating !s!ally takes &lace only once a year( After

mating, the males go their own way(

$he time between mating and laying eggs is normally

one to two months, de&ending on the s&ecies( %eathery/shelled eggs #!& to >00' are laid !s!ally in early

s!mmer, in a s&ot that will &rovide &rotection and

moist!re- !nder rocks, in leaves, !nder debris( +nce

laid, the mother gives her eggs no attention, the eggs

and babies are on their own #a few eotic s&ecies, like

Pythons, will g!ard their eggs for a few days(' Baby

snakes have a shar& b!m& on their sno!t, called an egg

tooth( $hey !se it to slice their way o!t of the shell( $he

egg tooth disa&&ears later on(

Some snakes give birth to live yo!ng #!& to >50 at a


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time' and carry their babies for 3 months or more(

$here are also some snakes who hold their eggs !ntil

they hatch and then deliver live babies(

ewborns range in length from 3 to >E inches( $heyre

miniat!re versions of the ad!lts and are able to start

h!nting immediately( Cales and females look alike

thro!gho!t their lives( $he babies grow !ickly at first,

slowing down considerably after mat!rity( $hey never

com&letely sto& growing( Snakes live >0 to "0 years,

de&ending on the s&ecies(

Predators

Birds, birds of &rey, sk!nks, o&oss!ms, raccoons, fish,

other re&tiles, minks, ferrets, ho!se cats( $he biggest

threat to snakes is habitat loss and killing by h!mans(Do snakes breathe air with lungs?

1. Snakes donot havea diaphragm like people do, so theycirculate air in and out of the lungsby narrowing the rib cage topush air out and then widening it again to create a vacuum tosuck air in.

Do snakes have a heart?1. Two atria and one ventricle make up the three-

chambered heartof a snake. The right and left atria receiveblood from the lungs and body, respectively, and pass it to theventricle to be circulated again. Encased in a sac, called the"pericardium," the heartis located at the branching of thebronchi.

How do snakes breathe?


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the C. This configuration is also seen in lizards, but

the function of the incomplete rings remains

unknown. The trachea usually terminates just in front

of the heart, and at this point it splits into the twoprimary bronchi, airways that direct air into either the

left or right lung.

In most snakes the short left bronchus terminates in a

vestigial, or rudimentary, left lung. The size and

functional capacity of this lung varies depending on

the species. It can be complete in some of the water

snakes where it is used for hydrostatic purposes. The

right bronchus terminates in the functional right lung.

Snakes breathe principally by contracting muscles

between their ribs. Unlike mammals, they lack a

diaphragm, the large smooth muscle responsible for

inspiration and expiration between the chest and

abdomen. Inspiration is an active process (muscles

contract), whereas expiration is passive (muscles

relax).

The portion of a snakes lung nearest its head has a

respiratory function; this is where oxygen exchange

occurs. The lung portion nearest the tail, regardless

of the lungs size, is more of an air sac. The inside of

these sac portions look more like the inside of a


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Scales are formed largely of keratin derived from the

epidermis. As the snake grows, which they do their

entire lives (growth just slows as they get older), this

outer layer of epidermis sheds off. New scales growbeneath the older outer scales. Eventually, the outer

layer sheds off, usually in one piece and inverted as if

it were a sock pulled from the top down. This

shedding process is called ecdysis.

In general, if the shed skin comes off in shards, it

may be a sign of some underlying problem. The

snakes health or husbandry issues, such as

improper environmental temperatures, humidity or

caging furniture, might be to blame. Scales are

attached to each other by soft skin generally not

noticed from the outside that folds inward between

each adjacent scale. Scales cannot stretch, but whena snake eats a large meal, the skin folds are pulled

out straight to expand the surface area.

Basically two types of scales are on a snake. Its top

and sides are generally covered by smaller scales.

These can juxtapose or overlap like shingles on a

roof. The bottom of the snake is covered by short butvery wide scales that look like rungs on a ladder.

These special scales are called scutes. They form

the belly of the snake and are integral in the snakes

ability to move.


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Snakes have two eyes, but they do not have eyelids.

A spectacle, a transparent scale that is actually part

of the skin, protects each eye. When a snake

undergoes ecdysis, it sloughs this spectacle off alongwith its skin. Spectacles turn a light, semiopaque blue

as the snake prepares to shed. Herpetologists call

this condition in the blue. This is normal, but

snakekeepers who have never seen it happen before

may mistake it for a problem. Immediately before the

actual shed, spectacles again become clear. Thismeans that the shed is imminent.

It is imperative that shed skin be examined every

time a snake sheds to make sure these spectacles

come off. Occasionally one does not, and this results

in a retained eye cap. Like other shedding problems,

a retained spectacle can be a sign of a health orhusbandry problem. In addition, if a retained

spectacle is not removed, it can cause problems with

the animals vision and can potentially damage the

eye.

Snakes lack an external ear, but they do have an

internal ear, and they are capable of detecting lowfrequency sounds ranging from 100 to 700 hertz. (A

young person with normal hearing can hear

frequencies between approximately 20 and 20,000

hertz.) A snakes inner ear also allows it to detect


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Nonvenomous snakes have four rows of upper teeth:

two rows attached to the maxillary (outer) bones, and

two rows attached to the palatine and pterygoid

(inner) bones. Only two rows are on the lower jaw;one is attached to each mandible. Most venomous

snakes substitute fangs for the maxillary teeth. These

fangs can either be in the front of the mouth, such as

in a rattlesnake, or the back of the mouth, such as in

a hognose snake.

Snakes use their teeth for grasping, not chewing.

Their teeth are recurved, so once a prey item is

bitten, the only direction for it to move is toward the

snakes stomach.

Snake Gastrointestinal

Tract Anatomy

Gastrointestinal Tract of the Snake

For the most part, the mouth does little more than

catch food for the snake. Very little chewing, if any,

occurs. After a snake catches its prey, its kinetic(moveable) skull walks the jaws in a stepwise

fashion, ratcheting the prey deeper into the throat

until ultimately its swallowed.


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Saliva produced has little digestive significance; its

role is mostly to serve as a lubricant. The esophagus

courses alongside the trachea and extends from the

back of the mouth to the stomach. Its longitudinalfolds allow for great stretchability to accommodate

large food items.

The junction between the esophagus and the

stomach is clearly noted at a site approximately equal

to three-fourths the length of the liver. Long and

tubelike in shape, the stomach ends in a tight valve

called the pylorus, where food is dumped into the first

loop of the small intestine called the duodenum. The

duodenum is found just after the end of the long,

spindle-shaped, dark-brown liver.

In snakes the small intestine is usually straight, but

some species may have short transverse loops. The

small intestine terminates at the junction with the

large intestine. A cecum, a small appendage between

the small and large intestines, is present in some

snake species. It is not known why some snakes

have a cecum and others do not, but the appendage

is generally found in herbivorous animals but not incarnivores.

The large intestine ends at the cloaca, a three-

chambered structure with multiple functions. Feces is


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Snake Cardiovascular

System AnatomyThe three-chambered reptilian heart is composed of

two atria, which receive blood from the lungs and

body, and a large ventricle, which pumps blood into

arteries. This heart is evolutionarily more basic than

the mammalian four-chambered heart, but because

of divisions and valves within the ventricle, the snake

heart still functions as a four-chambered heart very

similar to its mammalian counterparts.

Snakes and other reptiles have an interesting

adaptation to their cardiovascular system that

mammals lack. It is called the renal portal system. In

this type of system blood from the animals tail

passes through the kidneys first before returning to

the general body circulation.

This may be significant, especially in sick reptiles,

because many of the drugs used to treat infections

are eliminated from the body through the kidneys.

With certain drugs injected into a reptiles tail or rear

legs, the renal portal system may cause the

medication to lose some of its effectiveness.


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Veterinarians must understand the drugs they are

using and how best to administer them.

Snake Immune SystemAnatomySnakes, unlike mammals, do not have lymph nodes.

When a snake is sick, you wont see swollen lymph

nodes under the chin or arm pits like you might inpeople, dogs and cats. Snakes have a lymphatic

system, but it just is not as easy to find. In some

species, such as boids, a tissue similar to tonsils is

found in the esophagus. The spleen is a small,

spherical, reddish organ located between the gall

bladder and the pancreas. In younger animals it

functions in the creation of red blood cells, and in

older animals it helps in the destruction of cells and in

blood storage. In most snakes the spleen is usually

tightly adhered to the pancreas, and the two organs

are often collectively referred to as the

splenopancreas.

The pancreas is found just behind the gall bladder

and just after the end of the stomach. It is a major

endocrine organ. Among many things, it helps


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regulate the bodys blood-glucose levels and

produces digestive enzymes.

Interestingly, a snakes gall bladder is not associated

with the liver like it is mammals, lizards and turtles.

The single- or double-lobed thymus, a spherical,

reddish-pink structure, is found just in front of the

thyroid gland, which is just in front of the base of the

heart. The thymus is one of the organs responsible

for producing immune cells that fight infection.

The thyroid gland is responsible for the production of

thyroid hormone, a key in metabolism, and it is

responsible for the normal shedding cycle.

Reptiles have one or two pairs of parathyroid glands

found either just in front or just behind of the thyroid.

These difficult-to-find glands regulate calcium andphosphorus levels in the body. Because most snakes

eat whole prey, the parathyroid glands do not play as

significant a role in disease as they do in other

reptiles, such as the green iguana.

About three-fourths of the way down a snakes body

are a pair of adrenal glands commonly called stress

glands. These glands are found closely associated

with the gonads (testes or ovaries) and urogenital

structures (kidneys and ureters). The adrenals are

pinkish, tubelike structures found adjacent to, or just


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in front of, the gonads. These glands are very

important and function similar to the mammalian

glands. When a reptile is stressed, the adrenal

glands produce corticosterone, a type of steroid. Thisis important because the hormone suppresses an

animals immune system, thus making it more

susceptible to disease.

How Snakes igest Their Food

Snakes are often fo!nd to go h!ngry for long intervals( S!ch

behavior is mostly observed after they have h!ge meals( 9ereare some interesting facts abo!t how snakes digest their food(

Fid yo! know6

$he digestive enymes of snakes are so &owerf!l that they can

dissolve bones and egg shells( 9owever, hair, claws, insect

shells, etc(, are !s!ally ecreted by these animals(

Snakes have long, narrow, and limbless bodies( F!e to this

body sha&e, their internal organs are arranged in a linear

manner( As far as the digestive system of snakes is concerned,

it r!ns thro!gh almost the entire length of the body( .t starts

from the b!ccal cavity, and etends till the an!s( $he system is

well ada&ted to the feeding behavior of these animals(

Cost snakes often ehibit an intermittent feeding behavior with

long intervals between meals( S!ch intervals may s&an from a

few days to weeks, months, and even years in some cases( Aninteresting fact is that when an infre!ent feeder snake gets

active, their digestive system remains inactive( After the meal,

the snake t!rns inactive, b!t the digestive system gets active(

$hey have s&ecialied digestive systems that !ndergo ra&id


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growth to co&e !& with the increased demands of digestion(

$he increased rate of activity slows down once the meal is

digested com&letely( $he digestive system shrinks in sie, and

t!rns dormant( %et !s take a look at how snakes digest their

food(

Figestion in Snakes

.ntake- $he digestive system of a snake starts from the mo!th,

which is highly modified to swallow the &rey in whole( $he


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snake facts

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