What do snakes eat? Detailed answer

BIG ENCYCLOPEDIA FOR CHILDREN AND ADULTS
Free library / Directory / Big encyclopedia for children and adults

What do snakes eat? Detailed answer

Big encyclopedia for children and adults

Directory / Big encyclopedia. Questions for quiz and self-education

Did you know?

What do snakes eat?

There are no "vegetarian" snakes. All of them are predators and feed on various animal species. Snakes have very strong digestive juices that perform a vital function as snakes swallow their food whole. They do not have teeth to tear apart prey, as, for example, representatives of the cat family do. Birds and turtles have beaks. And all that snakes have is teeth as thin as needles, with which they catch their prey and send it to their mouths. But they cannot chew it.

The most unusual thing about snakes is the structure of their jaws, which is associated with a peculiar way of feeding. The jaws are very loosely attached to the rest of the bones of the skull. There are teeth on the jaws, and most snakes also have two rows of teeth in the sky. All these rows of teeth sit on bones, set in motion by special muscles. The snake eats by pulling one jaw on the prey while the teeth of the other jaw hold it so that it does not escape. The snake then releases its teeth, advances the other jaw forward, and plunges them again. Thus, food is pushed into the throat of the snake. Thanks to this structure of the jaws, the snake is able to swallow a surprisingly large animal. For example, a python eats such large animals as a deer and a leopard!

Of course, smaller snakes eat smaller animals. Most feed on medium-sized creatures: frogs, mice, rats, birds, and grasshoppers. Some small blind snakes feed on termites.

And there are also those who eat other snakes! Snakes are very picky about their food choices. The North American green snake, for example, eats spiders, fish, birds, and caterpillars, but it does not eat lizards or mice. And water snakes eat fish and frogs, but do not touch insects and mice. The yellow-striped snake living in North America is more omnivorous. Its diet includes worms, fish, frogs, rodents and birds.

Author: Likum A.

Random interesting fact from the Great Encyclopedia:

Was Jesus really born in a stable?

No.

At least not in the New Testament. The theory that Jesus was born in a barn is an assumption that arose from a single phrase from the Gospel of Luke: "The baby was lying in the cattle trough."

Likewise, no authoritative biblical source mentions the presence of animals at Christmas time. Of course, we are all very familiar with the scene in the manger that we see in churches and schools every Christmas Eve, but in fact, 1000 years have passed since the birth of Jesus before this "biblical" image was invented.

It is believed that the first person to set up a Christmas manger was Saint Francis of Assisi. On Christmas Eve 1223, in a cave on the hills above Greccio (Italy), he placed an armful of hay on a flat stone (which can still be seen today), placed a baby on top and added carved figures of an ox and a donkey (but without Joseph, Mary, wise men, shepherds, angels and lobsters).

Test your knowledge! Did you know...

▪ What did Dante Alighieri call his greatest work?

▪ How are virgins and virgins different from their peers?

▪ Why are human eyes blue and green even though they don't have these pigments?

See other articles Section Big encyclopedia. Questions for quiz and self-education.

Read and write useful comments on this article.

<< Back

Latest news of science and technology, new electronics:

Machine for thinning flowers in gardens 02.05.2024

In modern agriculture, technological progress is developing aimed at increasing the efficiency of plant care processes. The innovative Florix flower thinning machine was presented in Italy, designed to optimize the harvesting stage. This tool is equipped with mobile arms, allowing it to be easily adapted to the needs of the garden. The operator can adjust the speed of the thin wires by controlling them from the tractor cab using a joystick. This approach significantly increases the efficiency of the flower thinning process, providing the possibility of individual adjustment to the specific conditions of the garden, as well as the variety and type of fruit grown in it. After testing the Florix machine for two years on various types of fruit, the results were very encouraging. Farmers such as Filiberto Montanari, who has used a Florix machine for several years, have reported a significant reduction in the time and labor required to thin flowers. ... >>

Advanced Infrared Microscope 02.05.2024

Microscopes play an important role in scientific research, allowing scientists to delve into structures and processes invisible to the eye. However, various microscopy methods have their limitations, and among them was the limitation of resolution when using the infrared range. But the latest achievements of Japanese researchers from the University of Tokyo open up new prospects for studying the microworld. Scientists from the University of Tokyo have unveiled a new microscope that will revolutionize the capabilities of infrared microscopy. This advanced instrument allows you to see the internal structures of living bacteria with amazing clarity on the nanometer scale. Typically, mid-infrared microscopes are limited by low resolution, but the latest development from Japanese researchers overcomes these limitations. According to scientists, the developed microscope allows creating images with a resolution of up to 120 nanometers, which is 30 times higher than the resolution of traditional microscopes. ... >>

Air trap for insects 01.05.2024

Agriculture is one of the key sectors of the economy, and pest control is an integral part of this process. A team of scientists from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research-Central Potato Research Institute (ICAR-CPRI), Shimla, has come up with an innovative solution to this problem - a wind-powered insect air trap. This device addresses the shortcomings of traditional pest control methods by providing real-time insect population data. The trap is powered entirely by wind energy, making it an environmentally friendly solution that requires no power. Its unique design allows monitoring of both harmful and beneficial insects, providing a complete overview of the population in any agricultural area. “By assessing target pests at the right time, we can take necessary measures to control both pests and diseases,” says Kapil ... >>

Random news from the Archive

Adult elephants calm the youth 07.01.2022

Elephants seem to us smart and kind, but sometimes they find something on them, and they become violent and aggressive, attacking cars, motorcycles and bicycles, animals, people. Researchers at the University of Exeter have found that the aggressiveness of elephants - at least young ones - noticeably weakens when older elephants are next to them.

Researchers observed elephants in Botswana's Makgadikgadi National Park for three years. Among almost three hundred males there were elephants of various ages: teenagers (10-15 years old), older teenagers (16-20 years old), adults (21-25 years old) and elderly (over 26 years old). Elephants could quarrel with each other, but it is curious that adolescents more often attacked some foreign objects and other animals (in particular, livestock) when there were no elders nearby. At the same time, young elephants were not only more aggressive, but also more shy, which is understandable: aggressiveness is associated with fear, both in animals and in people.

If in the group of elephants there were not only teenagers, but also adult and elderly males, young elephants behaved more calmly, did not smash anything and did not attack livestock. Perhaps, next to adults and old people, young people feel more protected, or perhaps there is some kind of pedagogical influence on the part of adult elephants.

When talking about the social life of elephants, they usually mean females - it has long been known that they live in communities led by old and experienced female matriarchs. They help the rest to find water and food, choose safe routes during transitions from place to place, etc. However, male elephants also form groups: most of the males in such groups are quite young, although there are older individuals among them. We have already written about the fact that the older the male, the more likely it is that he will lead his comrades across the savannah, showing them where it is better to look for food and water. As you can see, adult males are important not only for the survival of the group, but also for psychological comfort.

The problem is that because of their tusks, old elephants often become prey for poachers. Left without leaders, juvenile elephants are more likely to run amok, and this is another reason to further tighten conservation measures aimed at protecting elephants and their habitats.

Other interesting news:

▪ In armor for a run

▪ Processor cooling system SilentiumPC Spartan 4 Max Evo ARGB

▪ Tooth spies on a person

▪ Powerful DeepCool Assassin IV CPU cooler

▪ Oregon Scientific MEEP! for children from six years old

News feed of science and technology, new electronics

Interesting materials of the Free Technical Library:

▪ section of the site Medicine. Selection of articles

▪ article Cut slice. Popular expression

▪ article What is aluminum? Detailed answer

▪ article Sweet root. Legends, cultivation, methods of application

▪ article How the inventors of the mosquito deceived. Encyclopedia of radio electronics and electrical engineering

▪ article The right word. Focus Secret

Leave your comment on this article:

All languages of this page

Home page | Library | Articles | Website map | Site Reviews