Interesting Facts About SNAKES

From enormous ones like the python, which can swallow animals as large as a deer whole, to snakes that are just a few inches long, snakes can be found in all types of habitats. While some climb trees, others live underground, and still others are found in the waters of lakes and even seas. Here are some interesting facts about Snakes :-

1. Out of about 3,000 species of snakes, only about 375 have venom that is dangerous to humans.

2. Snakes have more than 200 teeth, which they do not use to chew, since they point backwards, but bite and grip their prey securely.

3. The venom of the king cobra, the world’s largest poisonous snake, is strong enough to kill an elephant.

4. The snake’s forked tongue allows the snake to know the direction of the smell.

5. A snake’s heart can slide 1 to 1 1/2 times its length from its normal position, to allow the passage of swallowed prey.

6. Snakes have poor eyesight.

7. Snakes do not chew; they swallow their prey as a whole (frogs, rats, birds, etc.).

8. The upper and bottom jaws of a snake are not connected, enabling the snake’s mouth to be flexible enough to open wide and swallow large prey. A snake can swallow prey that is 4 times the width of its head.

9. Some snake species reproduce by laying eggs; others reproduce by keeping fertilized eggs inside them and delivering the baby snakes after the eggs hatch within the body.

10. Most snakes spread their venoms through biting. However, a few, such as cobras, can spit their venom at a target about 5-7 feet away. Snake venom does not hurt the skin—its poison could hurt eyes or open wounds.

11. As for the size, while the anaconda can grow up to 38 feet in length, the brahminy blind snake is just 2 inches long, making it the smallest snake.

12. Snakes need to shed their skin regularly while they grow, a process known as Molting. Snakes shed their skin by rubbing their head against something rough and hard, like a piece of wood or a rock

13. Snakes do not have any eyelids; instead, a transparent scale protects their eyes.

14. Snakes are the deadliest animal on earth, killing over 100,000 people each year.

15. A venomous snake usually has a broader head that bulges out behind the eyes where the snake stores its venom.

16. Snake venom is a complex mixture of proteins that, once unleashed, rapidly spreads through the victim’s body. Neurotoxic venom, which destroys the nervous system, is the variety that kills quickest.

17. Snakes have two long lungs, a long liver, kidneys and intestines. The last quarter of the snake has a small anal opening covered by a scale called the anal plate.

18. Most toxic snake of all is the Inland Taipan of Australia. It could kill 100 people with a single bite.

19. Snakes smell with their tongue. Smell is their strongest sense.

20. Snakes are deaf—but they can sense sound vibrations.