Scheltopusik

Although it might look like a snake, the scheltopusik is a legless lizard, and is sometimes known by its other name, the European glass lizard. The lizard grows to 1.35 metres and is usually tan coloured with a paler head and underbelly. It has two tiny legs, or leg stubs near its cloaca at the base of the tail.

Habitat:

European mainland to Central Asia. The scheltopusik prefers light woods, scrubby vegetation and rocky outcrops. Although it favours dry areas, it will come out after rain to hunt for snails and slugs.

Diet:

Snails, slugs, insects, eggs and occasionally very small mammals and birds.

Reproduction:

Females lay about 8 eggs some 10 weeks after mating. The eggs are often hidden in a crevice and guarded by the female. After about 50 days the young hatch and are 15 cm long.

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Common Kingsnake

While watching feeder birds this week at Hilton Pond Center, we noticed a movement at the edge of a gutter just above the observation window of the old farmhouse. We figured it to be one of our ubiquitous Eastern Gray Squirrels on one of its countless jaunts across the roof, but it was soon obvious that a serpent was making its way along the gutter.

All text & photos © Hilton Pond Center

A couple of Black Ratsnakes regularly climb the Flowering Dogwood trees that grow close to the farmhouse, and often they glide onto the roof on their way to hunting forays in the attic. (We're guessing that's why we never seem to hear the pitter-patter of little mouse feet overhead!) As the snake hung over the gutter, we noticed the first ten-inch segment of its body was the same width throughout; since ratsnakes have relatively wide heads and narrower necks, we now knew this was something different. While we watched, the snake continued to extend its body past the gutter's edge, eventually losing its grip on the smooth metal and falling about six feet to the wooden deck below. As soon as it hit the decking--unhurt by the quick descent--it was obvious that our new guest was serpentine royalty: a four-foot-long Common (or Eastern) Kingsnake,Lampropeltis getula.

Kingsnakes take their name from their ability to dominate other serpents; in fact, they eat them. The kingsnake apparently is immune to the bite of our North American pit vipers (Copperheads, Water Moccasins, and rattlesnakes)--as well as that of Eastern Coral Snakes--and seems to have no trouble swallowing these elongated prey items even when they're a little longer than the kingsnake itself. Kingsnakes are constrictors, so they typically suffocate their prey before dining, whether they be birds, mammals, lizards, frogs, turtle eggs, or just about any vertebrate small enough for the kingsnake to ingest.

Common Kingsnakes are non-venomous and often fail to bite when first encountered, so we didn't hesitate to grab our visitor on the deck to study and photograph it. As we reached for the kingsnake, it vibrated its tail rapidly--a common response that reaches perfection among the rattlesnakes. This scare tactic didn't deter us, and we grasped the kingsnake tightly behind its head. With just as firm a grip, it wrapped its strong, sinewy body around our hand--probably not an attempt to constrict and kill us but rather to provide stability in an unfamiliar situation.

The snake's next ploy was not unexpected, but it was unpleasant: out spewed a semi-liquid substance that undoubtedly is one of the vilest odors in nature. The smell--a mixture of musk and urine and feces--is indescribable, but once it has graced your olfactory nerves, you will never forget it. You also will wash your hands several times with perfumed soap after handling any snake that so anoints you. Most potential snake-eaters--including unnatural ones such as dogs and cats--are inclined to release any snake that "vents its spleen," especially if the predator gets a sudden mouthful.

This odoriferous material emanates from the snake's cloaca--the single opening through which solid and liquid wastes and reproductive cells must pass. In the photo at above left, the cloaca is the pinkish area on the snake's undersurface; normally the opening isn't nearly as obvious because it is sealed tight by scales that surround it. The cloaca also serves as a line of demarcation that helps one know whether a snake is poisonous or not--at least in North America. On our non-poisonous snakes, all the ventral scales posterior to the cloaca (i.e., those to the cloaca's right in the photo)--are double, while those ahead of it are single; in the poisonous pit vipers, all the belly scales are single, from head to tail tip. We don't recommend that you go around lifting snakes by their tails to see if they might be poisonous, but this tidbit of information may help put your mind at ease when you wonder whether any dead snakes brought in by Rover or Fluffy were venomous. (Caveat: The venomous Eastern Coral Snake has a double row of caudal scales, but this species doesn't occur in the Piedmont.)

Except for its pungent cloacal fluid, the Common Kingsnake we caught at Hilton Pond Center was quite dry, but it was almost slick to the touch; unlike rough-skinned snakes, the kingsnake's scales are unkeeled and smooth as glass (above right). This may be an adaptation that allows the kingsnake to glide more easily through small holes as it searches for prey. We imagine such hole-crawling happens a lot in the life of an Common Kingsnake, since individuals are known to live nearly 30 years and reach lengths of almost six feet.

After taking our close-up photos, we placed the kingsnake on the ground, where it formed into a tight ball (below left). This behavior may be another defensive mechanism, or may simply be the safest thing to do until the snake gets its bearings; it even stayed in a ball temporarily when we rolled it over on its back to photograph the ventral side (below right). Incidentally, the yellow-white markings on the dorsal surface of the serpent reveals why the Common Kingsnake is sometimes called "Chain Snake."

Common Kingsnakes occur in more temperate regions of the U.S. from coast to coast, but the seven subspecies have very different markings or lack them altogether. A related species, the secretive Mole Kingsnake, L. calligaster, occurs in the Carolina Piedmont, as does the Scarlet Kingsnake, L. triangulum--famous as a mimic of the Eastern Coral Snake. (The Scarlet Kingsnake also occurs in a brown form that is more often called the Eastern Milk Snake.)

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Back on the ground, our Common Kingsnake finally got oriented and--perhaps tired of our handling--assumed a strike posture. We zoomed out a little with the camera's telephoto attachment and dropped low to get a snake's eye view (see top photo). The serpent lunged toward us a few times, but thanks to the telephoto and our surprisingly quick reflexes, it never quite got all the way to the camera lens. As we finished our photo work and backed away, the kingsnake sensed an opening and slithered off into nearby shrubbery.

We hope our "king of snakes" doesn't go very far and that it remembers how it got onto the farmhouse roof; you never know when the ratsnakes might go on strike and require us to call in the kingsnake clan to keep the small rodent population under control at Hilton Pond Center.

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Biggest Snake: Giant Anaconda

If you look in the records there is a lot of controversy over which snake holds the world's record for massive size. The dimensions that have earned the anaconda the title of king is its total body mass or its weight (the sheer physical bulk of it). The largest anaconda ever measured was almost 28 feet long with a girth of 44 inches. She wasn't weighed at the time she was caught, but scientists estimate that she must have weighed over 500 lbs. The other snake that competes with the anaconda is the Asiatic Reticulated Python (Python reticulatus). Thepython holds the world's record for length of a snake, with the longest ever measured at 33 feet. Even though the longest python is longer than the record-holding anaconda, the girth of the anaconda is far bigger. Anacondas in the jungles of South America can grow as big around as a grown man!

If you've seen the stories circulating around the Internet about the world's biggest snake being held in captivity in Indonesia (back in 2003), then get the straight dope on snopes.com.

The Secret Life of an Anaconda

Anacondas in the wild spend most of their time hanging out in rivers hunting for their food. They are solitary creatures that are somewhat shy and not many of them are easily seen. They are very well camouflaged in the swamps and bogs in which they thrive. There are some historical reports of early European explorers of the South American jungles seeing giant anacondas up to 100 feet long and some of the native peoples of the South American jungle have reported seeing anacondas up to 50 feet long. No one has caught and measured an anaconda anywhere near that size. It is important to note that when a dead anaconda's hide or skin is laid out it can be stretched very easily, expanding to much longer lengths than the snake exhibited when alive.Reports of outsize anacondas that cannot be verified are usually due to distortions in perception, or a snake skin being disproportionately stretched and inaccurately measured. People are generally really bad at estimating length, especially for larger snakes. In fact, the larger the snake, the larger the margin of error.

Anacondas like to hang out in rivers so it would be difficult to estimate the length of one seen swimming without seeing the entire snake. It's the anaconda's ability to remain partly hidden in the water that makes it difficult to accurately find (and document) a specimen that exceeds the current world's record. (Would you want to jump in the water after a giant anaconda to try and measure a snake big enough to kill you?) Read about a scientist who does wade into the swamps to capture giant anacondas in the wild and study them

The Biggest Snake to Have Ever Lived

If you think that an anaconda big enough to swallow a capybara or tapir whole is big, you should see the size of the giant snake scientists discovered in a coal mine in Columbia, South America in 2008. Fossils of an enormous snake were discovered in an open coal mine in the Amazon rainforest. Paleontologists estimated the length of the snake - called Titanoboa - to be 43 feet long and estimated to weigh 2,500 pounds! Based on their findings, the scientists who identified this new species of snake said it was large enough to prey on crocodiles. Since snakes are cold-blooded, the average temperature of the Amazon had to have been 6 to 8 degrees warmer to support a snake that enormous.

Killer Snake

Anacondas are members of the boa constrictor family of snakes. That means that they kill their prey by coiling their large, powerful bodies around their victims and squeezing until their prey suffocates or is crushed to death and dies from internal bleeding. Then the snake unhinges its jaw and swallows the victim whole. Anacondas are much more likely to eat aquatic creatures, such as fish. Occasionally, they have been known to eat: caimans (a relative of the alligator), other snakes, deer, and even jaguars. Anacondas are rather slow-moving snakes, so they have to rely on stealth and the element of surprise to catch their unsuspecting prey.

Do Anacondas Bite?

Just about every species of snake on earth has teeth, but the anacondas' teeth are not used for chewing. Snakes' teeth are used for holding onto their prey, preventing them from escaping. Some snakes have venom in two specially designed, extra long teeth (called fangs) which they use to kill their prey. Anacondas have teeth, but they are not a venomous snake. They rely on their enormous size and power to subdue their victims. It is possible to be bitten by an anaconda, but the bite itself would not be fatal.

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Perito Moreno

Perito Moreno is one of the biggest natural spectacles of the world. It is located in Las Glaciares National Park in the south west of Santa Cruz province,Argentina. Perito Moreno is a 250 square kilometers glacier, 30 kilometers long, 5 kilometers wide and 80 meters high above the water. This icefield is the world's third largest reserve of fresh water and it is the only glacier in the world to be still growing. It was named after the Argentine explorer, Francisco Moreno, who played a great role in securing Argentina's territory in the conflict with Chile regarding the international border issue. 

Like all glaciers, this one begins high in the mountains, (in this case - the Andes), which separate Argentina from Chile. At the source, snowfall is nearly constant, and the weight of all this snow compresses the lower layers into virtually solid ice. As the snowfall continues, gravity pushes the thick mass of ice outward—downhill in this case. So a glacier is basically the same as a river, except that the water is frozen. This river moves very slowly about one meter per day from its source roughly 30km away. As it descends, it encounters higher air temperatures and begins to melt. Some glaciers melt into the ocean; this one melts into a lake. The end of the glacier is a sheer wall of ice about 5km (3 miles) long and standing 60m (200 feet) above the water’s surface. When pieces fall off (a process known as calving), they make a tremendous roar and splash. Every 3 to 4 years the ice breaks and it is a fantastic natural performance not to be missed.

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Python Hearts Double in Size—Now We Know Why

Fat does a heart good—at least if you're a python, a new study says.

High levels of fatty acids, or lipids, in the reptiles' blood nearly doubles the sizes of their hearts and other organs after breaking a long fast, experiments show.

The organs of pythons, which are infrequent eaters, balloon to speed up digestion after a typically enormous meal, according to study co-author Leslie Leinwand, a molecular biologist at the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Until now it’s been a scientific mystery how the python's body accomplishes this "extraordinary" feat, Leinwand said.

"When we drew blood from the animals, we figured that whatever what causing this organ growth was in the circulation, because all the organs, except the brain, had a post-meal increase in size."

And "when we looked at [the blood], it was so filled with fat it was opaque—it looked like milk."

Python Blood Leads to "Big Leap" in Science

To investigate the python's organ growth, Leinwand her team set up a colony ofBurmese pythons in the lab—"not a typical laboratory animal," she said.

(See "Python 'Nightmare': New Giant Species Invading Florida.")

When Leinwand received a shipment of 20 squirming baby snakes in a pillowcase in 2005, she thought perhaps she'd lost her mind, she said. Nevertheless, the team stuck with the experiment for five years.

Study leader Cecilia A. Riquelme discovered early on that adding plasma from python blood to rat heart cells in a culture would make the rat cells grow.

"That was a big leap," Leinwand said.

In a live animal, this sort of growth should make the heart overall more robust.

The next step was to figure out what was causing the organs to swell. The team gradually eliminated possible causes, such as a natural protein, leaving only the fatty acids.

The biologists then identified three specific lipids in python blood that increase after a meal. Sure enough, when the scientists injected a live mouse with these three fatty acids, its heart grew.

Heart-Healthy Pythons

What's most "intriguing about the python is it has this extraordinarily high level of fatty acids in its blood, and [it's] not sick," said Leinwand, whose study appears this week in the journal Science.

By contrast, people who have fat-laden blood are often at risk for serious cardiovascular conditions. (Read "Mending Broken Hearts" in National Geographic magazine.)

"Why is the python protected from getting some type of heart disease?" she said. There may be, she suggested, something about the combination of those three fatty acids that thwarts disease.

Another "$64,000 question" is how exactly the lipids enlarge the python's organs, Leinwand said. "So far, it hasn't fit into any paradigm that we know about."

Overall, it's far too early to assume the research will lead to heart-strengthening treatments for humans, she said. (See "Snake Venom May Slow Cancer Growth, Studies Hint.")

But there may be heartening news to come: Her team is now giving the three fatty acids to mice with heart disease to see if the lipids can prevent, slow down, or even reverse their condition.

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The King Cobra Snake

The King Cobra Snake (Ophiophagus hannah) is the largest venomous snake in the world. The King Cobra snake is also perhaps the most dangerous snake in the world where humans are concerned. Under conditions of high prey availability they can reach a length of 18.5 feet. Several people die from the bite of the King Cobra each year. A King Cobra can even kill an elephant.

The King Cobra snake is the largest of the venomous land snakes, growing up to 18.5 feet (5.7 metres) in length and with a width of up to 1 foot (0.3 metres) at the neck. However, as they are generally slender, King Cobras usually do not exceed 44 pounds (20 kilograms) in weight. Male King Cobras are longer and weigh more than female King Cobras, this is very unusual since in most snake species, the male is smaller than the female. 

 

The King Cobra can lift a third of its body off the ground. In fact, an 18 foot King Cobra, if stood upright, could actually look down onto the average human being. Like other snakes bearing the cobra name, the King Cobra can also flatten its neck, giving it the distinctive hood. When the King Cobra is threatened or on the attack, it will hiss, rear up and flatten its neck ribs into the hood. There are false eyespots on the hood, which can scare some predators. Even though their scaly skin glistens, it is actually dry to the touch. Adults cobras are yellow, green, brown, or black. Their throat is light yellow or cream coloured. Juveniles are black with yellow or white bars crossing the body. 

King Cobra Snake Habitat

The King Cobra snake lives in much of mainland South East Asia and throughout the dense highland forests. The King Cobra has a preference for living in areas where there are lakes and streams as it is an excellent swimmer. King Cobra populations have reclined in some areas of its range due to the destruction of forests, however, despite this the snake is not listed by the IUCN as in danger of becoming extinct. The King Cobra is said to be the only snake which makes nests for its eggs. It is widely worshipped in India as nagaraja ('king of snakes').

King Cobra Snake Behaviour and Diet

A Group of King Cobras is called a 'Quiver'. Despite the King Cobras fearsome reputation, it is generally a shy and reclusive animal, avoiding confrontation with people as much as possible. There are many smaller venomous snakes within this species range that are responsible for a far greater number of fatal snake bites. The King Cobra snakes diet is mainly composed of other snakes (ophiophagy - a specialized form of feeding or alimentary behaviour of animals which hunt and eat snakes). The King Cobra snake prefers non-venomous snakes, however, it will also eat other venomous snakes including kraits and Indian Cobras.

Cannibalism is not rare. When food is scarce, King Cobras will also feed on other small vertebrates such as lizards. Like all snakes, they swallow the prey whole, head first. The top and bottom jaws are attached to each other with stretchy ligaments, which let the snake swallow animals wider that itself. Snakes cannot chew their prey. Food is digested by very strong acids in the snakes stomach. After a large meal the snake may live for many months without another meal due to a very slow metabolic rate. King Cobras are able to hunt at all times of day, although it is rarely seen at night, leading some to debate whether it is a diurnal species.

 

King Cobras, like other snakes, smell using their forked tongue which picks up scent particles and transfers them to a special sensory receptor (Jacobson's Organ), located in the roof of its mouth. When the scent of a potential meal has been detected, the snake will continue to flick its tongue to gauge the preys direction. It will also rely on its excellent eyesight. The King Cobra snake is able to detect moving prey almost 300 feet (100 metres) away. The King Cobra snake uses sensitivity to vibrations and outstanding intelligence (compared to that of other cobra species) to track its prey.

King Cobra Snake Reproduction

Breeding usually takes place in late spring or early summer. After mating, the male will return back to its own home. The female will then lay between 10 and 25 eggs. The offspring are independent as soon as they are born and can capture prey the size of a rat.

Breeding takes place when the two snakes twist their bodies together and can last for days in this position. Females wait approximately 55 days before laying eggs. Female offspring are not bigger than male offspring. The King Cobra snakes average life span is about 20 years.

King Cobra Snake Venom

The King Cobras venom is a neurotoxin, capable of killing humans. The mortality rate can be as high as 75%, however, most bites involve nonfatal amounts. Their venom is not the most potent among venomous snakes, however, the amount of neurotoxin they can deliver in a single bite - up to two-tenths of a fluid ounce (seven millilitres) - is enough to kill 20 people, or even an elephant. Fortunately, king cobras are shy and will avoid humans whenever possible. King Cobra snakes are fiercely aggressive when cornered or provoked.

 

King Cobra venom, which is composed mostly of proteins and polypeptides, is produced in specialized salivary glands just behind the snakes eyes. When biting its prey, venom is forced through the snakes half - inch - long (8 - 10 millimetre) fangs and into the wound. Although the venom is less toxic than that of many other venomous snakes, including the Indian Cobra, a King Cobra is capable of injecting more venom than any other snake except the gaboon viper. In fact, a King Cobra can deliver enough venom to kill a full-grown Asian Elephant in 3 hours.

 

King Cobra venom attacks the victims nervous system and quickly induces severe pain, blurred vision, vertigo, drowsiness and paralysis. In the minutes following, cardiovascular collapse occurs and the victim falls into a coma. Death soon follows due to respiratory failure.

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Anaconda Snake

The Anaconda Snake is without doubt one of the most beautiful snakes in the world. Growing in some cases to greater than 26 feet (8 meters) it is also one of the longest and some might say the deadliest. Even though the Anaconda has the capability of devouring a man, in reality has little or no interest in hurting humans, mainly focusing on small reptiles and fish as its main food source. In fact, if an Anaconda were to come across a person in the Jungle it is most likely it would be snake doing the running (or slithering if you want to be more exact).

Anacondas kill through sheer strength not poison. Like most snakes the Anaconda has very sharp fangs but instead of using the fangs to inject venom the Anaconda actually uses them to grab hold of their prey, like a fishing hook. Once they have a strong and solid grip they then wrap themselves around and slowly squeeze their prey so tight they cannot breathe (they even stop the blood circulating), resulting in death through asphyxiation.


Range: South America, North and East Central.

RainForest Facts: The heaviest of all living snakes, the female Anaconda can reach lengths of 20 feet and weights of over 300 pounds.  Male Anacondas are considerably smaller than females, a large male may only be 8-10 feet in length and is a considerably thinner bodied animal.  A highly aquatic snake, the Anaconda is much more likely to be encountered in the wild in or near a body of freshwater.   The name Anaconda literally translates to "Water Boa"

The Anaconda is considered by many to be an aggressive animal in captivity.  Anacondas have a very large number of sharp, rear-facing teeth. A long lived animal in captivity, the Anaconda may live as long as thirty years.  In the wild predators of even large females undoubtedly shorten the average life span.  Large Black Caiman have been observed killing and eating females of up to 15 feet in length.

Anacondas mate in an unusual fashion.  Several males are attracted to an ovulating female resulting in a "mating ball" that can often obscure the female from view.  The mating always takes place in water.  After a gestation of six months the females give birth to live babies in the late spring to early summer, birth generally coincides with the wet season in the animals native range.


One recognized subspecies of Anaconda lives in the southern end of the Green Anacondas range, the Yellow Anaconda.  The Yellow Anaconda is a smaller, and more brightly colored snake.  A large Yellow Anaconda may only attain a length of  8 feet compared to well over 15 feet for a large Green Anaconda.   Like the Green Anaconda, the Yellow Anaconda gives birth to live babies.  The litters are slightly smaller in average number than the Green Anaconda, 10-20 is an average number of babies born to a healthy female Yellow Anaconda.

All Pythons are constrictors.  Snakes that hunt using constriction as a means of subduing prey will very quickly grab their prey with their teeth using a very fast strike. The constrictor will quickly wrap coils of their bodies around the prey and squeeze or constrict the prey item.  This process does not actually crush the prey and break its bones as is widely reported in the media.  Instead, they squeeze tightly so that the prey animal can’t breath and it suffocates, this process usually requires about 3-4 minutes for the prey animal to be killed.

Once the snake is certain the prey item is dead they then begin to search for the animals head, virtually all prey animals are consumed head first.  This process allows the snake to literally "fold" the arms and legs of the prey animal back as the creature is swallowed.  Contrary to popular belief a snake does not "unhinge" it's jaws, the jaws in fact are not actually attached in a mechanical way.  Long tendons and muscles connect the upper and lower jaws.  The lower jaw is actually made up of two separate bones to further enhance the animals ability to manipulate large prey items.

Once the snake has the animal past it's jaws a series rhythmic muscular contractions then pull the prey down the snake’s throat and into its stomach.   A very large prey item can be observed in the snakes stomach as a large bulge.  Contrary to popular belief the large prey item is not digested by slowing moving down the length of the snake.  Once the prey animal reaches the stomach, usually about 20 minutes for a very large item, the food item is stationary in the snakes stomach as it is gradually digested.   

 The size of the meal can have an impact on the duration of the digestion, but external factors such as ambient air temperature play a larger roll.  The snake must be careful not to eat when temperatures are too cool, the meal will quite literally decompose faster than the snake can digest it, causing a gaseous bloating in the snake that can result in death.  Ideal air temperatures allow the snake to digest the meal prior to the food item decomposing!  Snakes often will regurgitate a meal when the conditions do not allow it to properly digest the meal, this can include both temperatures that are too high and too low!

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Agkistrodon

Agkistrodon Contortrix Laticinctus | This form is typically a light tan in color, with darker brown, wide cross bands - which gives it its common name. Their actual color varies by locality, varying from a red-brown, to a gray-brown. In the western reaches of its range, the species can be difficult to distinguish from the Trans-Pecos copperhead, A. c. pictigaster. The only notable physical difference between the subspecies is that the A. c. pictigaster tends to have an elaborately patterned underside, often being an irregular, white and black pattern whereas A. c.

laticinctus tends to be plain white, only have minimal patterning, or have elongated random blotching instead of a distinct pattern. The subspecies intergrade where their ranges overlap, further confusing identification. It also overlaps with the southern copperhead, A. c. contortrix in the eastern reaches of its range, making specimens there difficult to distinguish, but generally A. c. contortrix has banding that narrows at the spine, creating hourglass shapes, whereas A. c.

laticinctus has bands that do not narrow at the spine. They grow to approximately 20-36 inches (50–90 cm) in length. As juveniles, all species of Agkistrodon have a bright green-yellow color to their tail tip believed to be used as a lure to attract prey items to approach within striking range. The color fades to a grey or brown at about a year of age.

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