Snakes are one of the most peculiar creatures on earth. Their unusual appearance, original way of movement, many remarkable features of behavior, and finally, the poisonousness of many species - all this has long attracted attention and aroused keen interest among people. The most diverse peoples of the globe have many legends, fairy tales and myths about snakes. All these fantasies, reinforced at times by an unconscious superstitious fear of snakes, are so closely intertwined with real facts that many "true" stories about snakes are much more fantastic than any myths. The study of snakes gradually exposes the legends and at the same time reveals new remarkable features in the structure and lifestyle of these animals.
At first glance, it seems that snakes are easy to distinguish in appearance from all other reptiles. Indeed, they have a long, legless torso, dressed in scales, their eyes are always covered with a transparent leathery shell, they lack an external ear. However, all these structural features can also be found in various lizards. Lizards and snakes are closely related animals, so they are classified only in different suborders within the general squamous order (Squamata). 
About thirty signs of external and internal structure distinguish snakes from lizards, but almost all of them "as an exception" are also found in the latter. Thus, only by the complex of all these differences can one reliably separate two suborders of scaly reptiles.
The skull of snakes has the most characteristic and stable features of these animals, which distinguish them from lizards. The structure of the skull provides exceptional extensibility of the mouth of snakes, which allows them to swallow whole prey, which is much thicker than their body.
The bones of the facial part of the skull of most species of snakes are movably connected to each other, and the lower jaw is suspended from the skull by highly extensible ligaments. The elastic ligament also connects the right and left halves of the lower jaw. In addition, the snake's brain is entirely enclosed in a bone capsule, and the interorbital septum is not developed.
The teeth of snakes are well developed and serve to bite, capture prey and push it into the esophagus, but by no means for chewing or tearing the prey, since the prey is swallowed whole. Therefore, all teeth are relatively thin, sharp and bent back. They are located on the upper and lower jaws, and in many snakes also on the palatine, pterygoid and premaxillary bones. In addition to the usual solid teeth, snakes of some families have furrowed or tubular teeth that serve to introduce poison into the body of the victim. Furrowed teeth located in the back of the upper jaw are characteristic of poisonous snakes. Aspid and sea snakes have short fixed tubular teeth in front of the mouth, while vipers and pit vipers have long and mobile tubular teeth mounted on a very short maxillary bone that can rotate. At the same time, the venom-conducting fangs, with the mouth closed, lie along the jaw, pointing back, but when the mouth opens, they become perpendicular, taking a "combat" position.
The belt of the forelimbs in snakes is completely absent, and from the belt of the hind limbs in some snakes (boas, valkovy snakes, blind snakes, narrow-mouthed snakes), small bone rudiments of the pelvis are preserved. In boas and roller snakes, the rudiments of the hind limbs themselves have also been preserved in the form of paired claws on the sides of the anus.
The spine of snakes, due to the disappearance of the limb belts, is not clearly divided into sections. The number of vertebrae is very large, from 141 in the thickest and shortest snakes to 435 in the longest and thinnest. The ribs have exceptional mobility. The sternum is absent, and therefore the ribs can diverge widely to the sides, passing large prey through the digestive tract. In addition, many snakes are able to spread their ribs to the sides, flattening the body, when defending.
The internal organs have undergone a significant change in accordance with the elongated shape of the legless body. All of them have an elongated shape and are arranged asymmetrically. In addition, some of the paired organs lost one half and became unpaired. For example, in the most primitive snakes, both lungs are developed, but the right one is always larger than the left; in most snakes, the left lung completely disappears. Vipers and some other snakes, in addition to the right lung, also have the so-called "tracheal lung", formed by the expanded back part of the trachea. The lung itself in its back part is transformed into a thin-walled air reservoir. It is very stretchy, and the snake can swell strongly when inhaling, and when exhaling, it can emit a loud and prolonged hiss.
The esophagus of snakes is very muscular, which makes it easier to push food into the stomach, which is an elongated bag that passes into a relatively short intestine. The kidneys are strongly elongated in length, and the bladder is absent. The testicles are also elongated; the copulatory organ of males is paired sacs, usually equipped with spines of various sizes and shapes. These sacs lie under the skin behind the anus and turn outwards when aroused.
For nervous system snakes are characterized by a small head and a powerful, long spinal cord. This causes, on the one hand, the primitiveness of higher nervous activity and, on the other hand, high coordination, accuracy and reactivity of body muscle movements.
The most important sense organ of snakes is the tongue in combination with Jacobson's organ. The paired Jacobson's organ is a thin chemical analyzer and has two outlets on the upper palate. The snake's tongue protrudes through the semicircular notch of the upper jaw, flutters in the air for several seconds, lightly touching nearby objects with forked tips, and then is drawn inward. Here, the ends of the tongue are thrust into the holes of the Jacobson's organ, and the snake receives information about negligible amounts ("traces") of substances in the air and on the substrate. Thus, by alternately sticking out and retracting its tongue, the snake moves quickly and confidently along the trail of prey, looking for prey, a partner, or a source of water.
Unfortunately, still many people believe; the snake's tongue is a "deadly sting" and, seeing its protruding tips, they confidently declare the snake poisonous and, at every opportunity, sometimes kill a completely harmless animal.
The eyes also play a large role in the orientation of snakes, but most of the vision is not sharp. This, in particular, is due to the fact that the eye is covered with a thin and transparent leathery film formed from the fused eyelids. This film comes off the eye along with the rest of the cuticle during molting. Therefore, before molting, the eyes of snakes become cloudy (the surface layer of the film peels off), and after molting they become especially transparent. The dry film covering the eye gives the snake's gaze the seeming stillness and coldness that so frightens many people and creates myths about the hypnotic power of the snake's gaze. The pupil of the eye in diurnal snakes is round, while in twilight and nocturnal snakes it is often extended into a vertical slit. It has a special shape in whip-shaped snakes, most of all resembling a horizontally located keyhole. This structure of the pupil provides the ability for binocular vision, in which up to 45 ° field of view covers both eyes at once.
The sense of smell of snakes is well developed and serves as one of their guiding senses. The nostrils are located on the lateral or upper edge of the muzzle. In marine, as well as in some sand snakes, the nostrils can be closed with special valves, which prevents water from entering when diving or sand when crawling in its thickness.
The hearing organs are greatly weakened: there is no external auditory opening at all, and the middle ear is also simplified. Only the inner ear is fully developed. Therefore, snakes hear very poorly the sounds propagating through the air, and in the ordinary sense of the word they are almost deaf.
Some snakes have thermal sense organs, or remote thermoreceptors, which allow them to detect heat from the body of prey at a distance. In pythons, they are represented by shallow pits on the upper labials; in African vipers of the genus Bitis, they have the form of cup-shaped depressions immediately behind the nostrils. These organs are especially highly developed in pit vipers. The paired thermolocator is visible from the outside in the form of pits on the sides of the muzzle between the nostrils and the eye.
The snake's body is covered with horny shields and scales. On the head of many snakes, large shields of a regular and constant shape are grouped in a strict; order typical for each species, and serve as an important feature for the scientific description and definition of species.
The body from above and from the sides is covered with rounded diamond-shaped scales, which are located in longitudinal and diagonal rows, and usually the anterior scales slightly overlap the posterior ones. In some species, the scales may have a hexagonal or trihedral shape and be located in the same plane, without overlap (some sea and warty snakes). Horny scales are smooth or have a more or less pronounced longitudinal keel. Between the horny scales of neighboring longitudinal rows there are areas of thin and soft skin, collected in a small fold hidden under the scales. When swallowing large prey, the longitudinal rows of horny scales diverge, the leathery folds straighten out and the body greatly increases in diameter. The scales of one longitudinal row, on the contrary, are firmly connected to each other.
The belly of the snakes is covered with large transversely elongated shields. Only in some aquatic and burrowing species (warty, part of marine, blind snakes, narrow-mouthed) the body from below, as well as from above, is dressed with small scales. The abdominal shields are interconnected by soft folds of skin, and when large food is swallowed, these folds straighten out, and the abdominal shields diverge in the longitudinal direction. Thus, the covers of the snake have a large extensibility, and on the back and sides - transverse, and on the belly - longitudinal.
The top layer of the skin periodically exfoliates, and molting occurs. When molting, the exfoliated epidermis departs first at the front end of the muzzle, and then is removed from the body of the snake with a stocking. A molting snake is actively moving, rubbing its head against the soil and stones, crawling through cracks, pulling off its old skin. Before molting, the color of the snake becomes whitish, and the eyes become cloudy, but after molting, the snake sparkles with bright fresh colors. Healthy snakes molt 2-4 times a year, and the crawl comes out entirely, while in sick and emaciated snakes, molting occurs more often and the old skin peels off in pieces.
In rattlesnakes, when molting, the end scales remain on the tail in the form of caps and form a special ratchet, which they use to warn large enemies.
The coloration of snakes is very diverse and for the most part adaptable to the color of the natural environment. This is the green color of many tree snakes, yellowish-sandy - in desert species. The coloration of some species, such as the tiger python or the Gaboon viper, seems bright and conspicuous to us when we see them in the zoo. But in natural conditions, among the colorful leaf litter under the canopy of the tropical forest, this coloring perfectly hides the snake, dismembering and making invisible the true contours of its body.
Some species, however, have bright colors that make them stand out even in their natural setting. These are primarily coral and garter snakes, royal snakes, in the color of which black, yellow and red transverse rings alternate. This coloring is a warning. The extreme resemblance of non-venomous royal snakes and poisonous asps is often cited as an example of imitative resemblance - mimicry. However, such an explanation does not stand up to criticism: firstly, coral asps very rarely and reluctantly bite and lead a twilight lifestyle, so that predators cannot develop a clear idea about the danger of this color; secondly, the alleged "imitators" - king snakes - are much more widespread than their imaginary "model".
Many snakes that are colored patronizingly have areas of the body with a bright pattern, which they show only at the moment of danger. Such is the spectacle snake - a cobra, straightening the cervical region with a clear pattern of "glasses" on the dorsal side. In other species of snakes, the underside of the tail is painted bright orange, and when defending, the snake raises its tail with the bright side to the enemy and shakes it, sometimes even makes “lunges” with its tail, as if wanting to bite.
Usually, young snakes are colored more brightly and contrastingly, while adults are more uniformly colored.
According to WWW.ANIMALS.Ru
Snakes are reptiles! To be more specific, they are classified as members of Animals; type ; Class . There are several superfamilies, families, genera and more than 3.5 thousand species of snakes. Reptiles also include turtles, crocodiles, beakheads, amphisbaenaes, and lizards.
Reptiles -, which means that their body temperature changes depending on the conditions environment. They bask in the sun to raise their body temperature or hide in the shade and under rocks to lower their temperature.
To date, science knows more than 3.5 thousand species of snakes. They can be found in, streams, and. They can live in water, on land, and on top of trees. Snakes are found on all (except for isolated islands such as New Zealand and Ireland).
body of snakes
Snakes have elongated cylindrical bodies covered in scales that act as protective armor against hard and hot surfaces as they move. The scales are also waterproof and prevent moisture loss. Scales on the belly enable snakes to move on smooth surfaces and to cling to branches. Snakes need to shed their old skin at least once a year. When snakes are about to shed their skin, their eyes become cloudy and partially blind.
Do snakes have bones?
Many people think that these have no bones because of their ability to bend the body. However, snakes have more bones than humans. While an adult human has about 33 vertebrae and 24 ribs, snakes have over 200 vertebrae and the same number of ribs. Their bones are short and slender, which is the reason for their flexibility. They have strong muscles that protect the internal organs. The head and throat make up a third of the bones in the body. Snakes have two large lungs, intestines, kidneys and a long liver.
snake fangs
Most snakes have teeth, two rows on the lower jaw and four rows on the top. However, only poisonous snakes have fangs. Canine teeth are sharp, long and hollow teeth in the upper jaw. They are attached to the venom sacs in the snake's head and are used to expel venom. The poison kills or paralyzes the prey. Also, poison is often used to make antidote.
Snakes are distinguished by their unusual appearance and behavior, attracting the enduring interest of scientists and admirers of reptiles. The appearance of these reptiles on the planet is attributed to the Cretaceous period, but their ancestors, ancient lizards, appeared much earlier, in the Paleozoic. And in this article you will find out what significance this reptile has in magic and everyday life.
The first reptiles originated in Africa more than 200 million years ago, subsequently spreading throughout the world, except for Antarctica.
Animal habitats are tropical areas, forests, steppes, mountain slopes and foothills. Reptiles can live in water, on land and trees. Sea snakes have gone into the deep waters of the ocean, breeding far from coastal areas. Reptiles also inhabit freshwater lakes and rivers. The species diversity of snakes is about 3 thousand, which are combined into 23 families.
General Characteristics of Scaled Reptiles
Many species are poisonous, some reptiles are capable of inflicting deadly bites. Some species use venom to paralyze prey. The elongated body of reptiles is completely covered with scales.
Some species can reach 12 meters in length. The smallest snakes are only 8 cm. Predatory individuals feed on insects, frogs, fish, bird eggs and small mammals. Certain species are capable of swallowing prey several times larger than reptiles.
The color of the skin of reptiles is varied and often matches the color scheme of the natural environment. At first glance, bright colors reliably hide reptiles in tropical forests, among lush greenery.
Some snakes are distinguished by variegated skin patterns, even in a rather faded environment, signaling danger to others. There are species that show a warning color only at the moment of danger.
The duality of the image in ancient mythology
In ancient times, snakes were a rather controversial symbol, combining the positive concepts of fertility, immortality, wisdom and the negative ones - evil, duplicity. The duality was based on the poisonousness of the reptiles, which brought death, and on the ability to regenerate and resurrect by shedding their skin. The animal is a symbol of healing and medicine.
Legends speak of the wisdom of these reptiles, who know the secret of eternal life and the secrets of healing recipes. The image of the ancient god Asclepius resurrecting from the dead was an image in the form of a staff entwined with a snake.
Among the huge variety of reptiles, snakes were a symbol of healing. The snakes were called the snake of Aesculapius and revered in Rome and. The symbol of modern medicine is depicted as a bowl of medicine wrapped around a snake.
In Antiquity, the reptile was a sacred animal to the goddess Athena. In Egypt, the image of the goddess Isis was represented as half woman, half snake. Egyptian mythology associated the image of a snake with the Sun, as an attribute of the god Osiris. The snake combines cunning and deceit, dark forces and evil. Ancient beliefs endowed reptiles with the qualities of an intermediary between the earthly and other worlds.
The symbol of the reptile in the culture of Eastern countries
Chinese culture is filled with ancient legends and traditions related to snakes. In most legends, reptiles embody negative symbols and evil. The traditions of the Far East do not distinguish between the images of dragons and snakes.
Dragons acted as guardians of the temples, guarding esoteric knowledge and treasures. There is an opinion that represents a snake closed in a circle, as a reflection of the concept of yin-yang, symbolizing harmony and eternity.
The animal was considered bisexual, personifying fertility. The chthonic nature of the reptile embodied the power of dark magic and omniscience. Thanks to the ability to glide without the help of limbs, reptiles were considered an all-pervading creature, able to overcome any obstacles.
The black sun served as the image of sorcerers and witches, representing sin and the dark forces of nature. The Heavenly Serpent, or the Azure Dragon, was the symbol of the rainbow, embodying the transition between the worlds. In Japan, this animal is an invariable attribute of the gods of thunder and thunder.
The embodiment of the image in Christianity
The image of this reptile in Christianity is considered dually, combining wisdom and the chthonic symbol of the devil. The personification of the fall into sin and everything dark that must be overcome by man. The animal wrapping around the Tree of Life was a positive symbol, the snake on the Tree of Knowledge is the dark beginning, Lucifer.
The reptile, depicted with a female head, personified temptation. In Christian beliefs and culture, the animal personifies the negative image of a poisonous creature with the ability to wriggle, using lies and cunning. Popular beliefs endowed negative heroes with a "serpent's heart", implying the malice and deceitfulness of the images.
Greek legends represent the snake, symbolizing healing and renewal. In Jewish legends, a reptile is always evil and sin. The image is widely represented in almost all mythologies and cultures of the world. Often the symbol was associated with fertility, male and female principles, home. Many magical texts contain an appeal to these animals as intermediaries between the worlds.
Love nature, respect snakes and subscribe to new articles on the site.
There are many amazing living creatures on our planet. We see some of them every day when walking down the street, others we can only meet in the wild or in a zoo, and we don’t notice the third at all. Among other living creatures, snakes occupy a worthy place. These amazing creatures have a number of unique features, many legends and traditions are associated with them. In addition, some of their species are very useful for humans.
general information
Biologists classify snakes as scaly, or rather, as a suborder of reptiles. In Latin, the snake sounds - Serpentes. This species can be found in almost every corner of the world, with the possible exception of the north and south poles, as well as a number of islands. The largest of which are New Zealand and Ireland.
Although the snake is commonly associated with venom, non-venomous species of snakes outnumber their venomous counterparts. Poison is a tool that helps many snakes in hunting. There are a number of species of these creatures, whose poison can kill a person. Snakes deprived of this tool for hunting either swallow food alive, or suffocate it, or deliver a strong blow to the head, breaking the skull of the victim.
The smallest representatives of this species of reptiles are about 10 cm long. And the largest of the officially registered ones was about 15 meters long. Moreover, according to scientists, this is far from the limit, and larger individuals can be found in the Amazon jungle. On average, most snakes are about one meter long. In the wild, snakes live 5 to 15 years.
The body of the snake, its features
Visually, you can confuse legless lizards and snakes. But if you look closely, you can easily distinguish these creatures. Both the left and right parts of the snake's jaw are movable, they do not have ear openings and eardrums, as well as a shoulder girdle. In addition, the snake has no eyelids.
Her body is covered with scales, to the touch, despite various misconceptions, she is dry. In fact, the snake has transparent scales - eyelids that are closed all the time. They protect the eyeball, allowing the snake to see through them. The snake periodically sheds, shedding old skin.
The body of the snake is elongated, the internal organs are located in connection with this in different parts of a very long body. The snake does not have a thorax, and most of its species do not have pelvic bones. Although in some species, its rudiments are still found. The skull of a snake has not only a special shape, but also a specific structure, in particular, most of its bones are very mobile relative to each other. Many of them are connected by special bonds.
Poisonous snakes have special venom sacs in their mouths and sharp teeth through which venom enters them through special channels or grooves. The structural features of the internal organs of these creatures can be listed for a very long time. We only note that in a number of species they may have minor differences.
sense organs
- It is worth paying special attention to the sense organs. They have the following feelings:
- Smell. In order to catch the smell of prey, snakes do not use their nose, but their tongue. It collects odor particles and transfers them to the oral cavity, where a special organ analyzes them. The tongue, therefore, acts simultaneously as an organ for determining taste and smell.
- Vision. Different types of these reptiles have very different visual acuity. Some people only see light and darkness. While the eyesight of others is very sharp. Often snakes living underground have poor eyesight, and tree dwellers have good dignity. In many species of these creatures, vision is primarily for tracking movement, and not for obtaining a clear image.
- Thermal sensitivity. On the head, snakes have a number of special thermal receptors. They enable these reptiles to capture the heat that warm-blooded animals radiate. It resembles a kind of thermal vision.
- vibration sensitivity. Instead of hearing, snakes were able to feel the sounds and vibrations of the earth. Due to their high sensitivity to vibration, these creatures perfectly feel when other animals or other objects approach them.
Snakes are animals with a long, narrow and flexible body. They do not have legs, paws, arms, wings or fins. There is only a head, body and tail. But does a snake have a skeleton? Let's find out how the body of these reptiles is arranged.
snake features
Snakes belong to the class of reptiles. They live all over the earth, except for Antarctica, New Zealand, Ireland and some Pacific islands. They are also not found beyond the Arctic Circle and prefer the warm tropics. These animals can live in water, desert, rocky mountains and dense forests.
The body of the snake is elongated and, depending on the species, has a length of several centimeters to 7-8 meters. Their skin is covered with scales, the shape and location of which is not the same and is a specific feature.
They do not have movable eyelids, outer and middle ear. They hear poorly, but they distinguish vibrations perfectly. Their body is very sensitive to vibrations, and since it is often in direct contact with the ground, the animals feel even slight shaking of the earth's crust.
Vision is not well developed in all snakes. They need it mainly in order to distinguish between movement. Worst of all, representatives of species living underground see. Special receptors for thermal vision help snakes recognize prey. They are located in their facial part under the eyes (in pythons, vipers) or under the nostrils.
Does a snake have a skeleton?
Snakes are predators. Their food is very diverse: small rodents, birds, eggs, insects, amphibians, fish, crustaceans. Large snakes can even bite a leopard or a wild boar. They usually swallow their prey whole, pulling on it like a stocking. From the outside it may seem that they have absolutely no bones, and the body consists of only muscles.
To understand whether snakes have a skeleton, it is enough to refer to their classification. In biology, they have long been identified, which means that at least this part of the skeleton is present in them. Together with turtles, crocodiles, they belong to, occupying an intermediate link between amphibians and birds.
The structure of the skeleton of a snake has some similarities, but differs in many ways from other members of the class. Unlike amphibians, reptiles have five sections of the spine (cervical, trunk, lumbar, sacral, and caudal).
The cervical region consists of 7-10 movably connected vertebrae, allowing not only to raise and lower, but also to turn the head. The body usually has 16-25 vertebrae, each of which is attached to a pair of ribs. The tail vertebrae (up to 40) decrease in size towards the tip of the tail.
The skull of reptiles is more ossified and hard than that of amphibians. Its axial and visceral sections are fused in adults. Most representatives have a sternum, pelvis and two limb belts.
Signed snake skeleton
The main distinguishing feature of snakes is the absence of front and rear limbs. They move by crawling on the ground, fully relying on the entire body. Limb rudiments in the form of small processes are present in the structure of some species, for example, pythons and boas.
In other snakes, the skeleton consists of a skull, torso, tail and ribs. The body section is greatly elongated and contains much more "details" than other reptiles. So, they have from 140 to 450 vertebrae. They are connected to each other by ligaments and form a very flexible structure that allows the animal to bend in all directions.
The sternum is completely absent in the skeleton of the snake. From each vertebra, ribs extend from both sides, which are not connected to each other. This allows you to increase the volume of the body several times when swallowing large foods.
The vertebrae and ribs are connected by elastic muscles, with the help of which the snake can even lift the body vertically. In the lower part of the trunk region, the ribs are gradually shortened, and in the caudal region they are absent altogether.
Scull
In all snakes, the bones of the brain box are movably connected. The articular, surangular and angular bones of the lower jaw are fused with each other, connected to the dentary by a movable joint. The lower jaw is attached to the upper ligament, which can be greatly stretched to swallow large animals.
For the same purpose, the lower jaw itself consists of two bones, which are connected to each other only by a ligament, but not by a bone. In the process of eating prey, the snake alternately moves the left and right parts, pushing the food inside.
The skull of snakes has a unique structure. If the appearance of the spine and ribs is typical for the entire suborder, then the skull reveals the features of a particular species. For example, in a rattlesnake, the head skeleton has a triangular shape. In pythons, the head is elongated in the shape of an oval and slightly flattened, and the bones are much wider than those of the rattlesnake.
Teeth
Teeth are also a distinctive feature of a species or genus. Their shape and number depend on the lifestyle of the animal. Snakes need them not to chew, but to bite, capture and hold prey.
Animals swallow food, while not always waiting for her death. To prevent the victim from escaping, the teeth in the snake's mouth are angled and directed inward. This mechanism resembles a hook for catching fish and allows you to firmly dig into the prey.
The teeth of the snake are thin, sharp and are divided into three types: constrictor, or solid, grooved, or grooved, hollow, or tubular. The former are present, as a rule, in non-poisonous species. They are short and numerous. On the upper jaw they are arranged in two rows, and on the lower jaw - in one.
Furrowed teeth are located at the end of the upper jaw. They are longer than solid ones and are equipped with a hole through which poison enters. They are very similar to tubular teeth. They are also needed for injecting poison. They are fixed (with a permanent position) or erectile (pull out of the jaw groove when threatened).
snake venom
A large number of snakes are poisonous. They need such a dangerous tool not so much for protection as for immobilizing the victim. Usually two long poisonous teeth stand out clearly in the mouth, but in some species they are hidden in the depths of the mouth.
Poison is produced by special glands located at the temple. Through the channels, they are connected to hollow or embossed teeth and are activated at the right time. Separate representatives of rattlesnakes and vipers can remove their "stings".
Taipan snakes are the most dangerous to humans. They are common in Australia and New Guinea. Before a vaccine was found, mortality from their poison was noted in 90% of cases.