In this article we will talk about what types of snakes exist, as well as what are the characteristics and lifestyle of their various species. Snakes are a suborder of the class of reptiles. They differ from other reptiles in their elongated body, as well as the absence of movable eyelids, external auditory canal and paired limbs. Each of these characteristics is also found in lizards. Snakes (presumably) originated from them in the Cretaceous period (that is, approximately 135-65 million years ago). However, all together these signs are characteristic only of snakes. Today, about 3,000 of their species are known. The photos that you will find in this article will help you better imagine some types of snakes.

Lifestyle

These animals are predators. Many of them capture prey that is significantly larger than the snake itself. Young and small individuals usually feed on insects, molluscs, worms, some also reptiles, amphibians, fish, birds, rodents, as well as larger mammals. Several months may pass between two meals.

In most cases, snakes lie motionless, lying in wait for their prey, after which they rush at it with amazing speed and begin to swallow it. Venomous species of snakes bite and then wait for the venom to take effect. Boa constrictors strangle the victim by wrapping themselves around it.

Various species of snakes are found everywhere except small oceanic islands and New Zealand. They live in forests, deserts, steppes, underground and in the sea. The largest number of species live in the warm countries of Africa and East Asia. More than 50% of Australia's snakes are venomous.

Snakes usually live 5-10 years, and some individuals live up to 30-40 years. They feed on many mammals and birds (crows, eagles, storks, hedgehogs, pigs and representatives of the order Carnivora), as well as other snakes.

Methods of transportation

There are several ways to move them. The snake usually bends in a zigzag manner and is pushed away by areas of its body adjacent to the ground. Species of snakes living in the desert use a “lateral move”: the body touches the surface at only two points, the front part of it is moved to the side (in the direction of movement), after which the back part is “pulled up”, etc. “Accordion” is another method of movement, characterized in that the body of the snake is assembled into tight loops, and its front part moves forward. Also, large snakes move in a “caterpillar motion” in a straight line, clinging to the soil with their scutes and straining the muscles located in the abdominal part of the body.

snake poison

About 500 species of snakes are dangerous to humans. Every year, up to 1.5 million people are bitten by them, and up to 50 thousand die. Of course, this is not the most common cause of death today. However, it is important to be able to determine what species a snake belongs to and whether it is poisonous. Snakes do not attack without reason and try to save their poison. Scientists have developed special serums, which significantly reduced the number of deaths from their bites. In Thailand, for example, up to 10 thousand people died annually at the beginning of the 20th century, and today only about 20 people die. Snake venom is used in small quantities in medicinal purposes, it has an anti-inflammatory effect and analgesic effect, stimulates tissue regeneration.

The suborder Snakes are divided into 8-16 families. Let's introduce the main types of snakes and their names with photos.

Slepuny

These are small snakes with a worm-like body. They are adapted to life underground: the head of these creatures is covered with large scutes, the bones of the skull are tightly fused, and a short tail serves as support for the body while moving through the soil. Their eyes are almost completely reduced. Rudiments of the pelvic bones have been found in blind blinders. There are about 170 species in this family, most of which live in subtropical and tropical areas.

Pseudophods

They got their name due to the presence of rudiments of their hind limbs, which turned into claws located on the sides of the anus. The reticulated python and anaconda are pseudopods - the largest modern snakes (they can reach a length of 10 meters). About 80 species include 3 subfamilies (Sand Boas, Pythons and Boas). These snakes live in the subtropics and tropics, and some species live in the arid zones of Central Asia.

Aspid snakes

These include more than 170 species, including mambas and cobras. A characteristic feature of these snakes is the absence of a zygomatic shield. They have a short tail, an elongated body, and their head is covered with large, regular-shaped scutes. Representatives of aspids lead a terrestrial lifestyle. They are distributed mainly in Australia and Africa.

The most dangerous type of black snake is the black mamba. She lives in various parts African continent. This snake is known to be very aggressive. Her throw is extremely accurate. The black mamba is the world's fastest land snake. It can reach speeds of up to 20 km/h. The black mamba can make 12 bites in a row.

Its venom is a fast-acting neurotoxin. The snake releases about 100-120 mg of poison in one injection. If medical assistance is not provided to a person as soon as possible, death occurs, depending on the nature of the bite, within 15 minutes to 3 hours. Other types of black snakes are not as dangerous. The fatality rate for a black mamba bite without antivenom is 100% - the highest of any venomous snake.

Sea snakes

Most of them never go onto land. They live in water, to which these snakes are adapted: they have light, voluminous valves that close their nostrils, a paddle-shaped tail and a streamlined body. These snakes are very poisonous. About 50 species include this family. They live in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

The most poisonous snake species in the world is the Belchera (sea snake). It got its name thanks to Edward Belcher, a researcher. Sometimes this snake is called differently - the striped sea snake. She rarely attacks humans.

It takes a lot of effort to provoke this snake to bite, so cases of its attack are extremely rare. It can be found in the waters of Northern Australia and South-East Asia.

Viperaceae

They have a thick body, a flat triangular head, a vertical pupil, a tracheal lung and developed venom glands. Rattlesnakes and copperheads belong to the pit viper family, and real vipers include the sand viper, viper, and viper. The family includes approximately 120 species of snakes.

Colubridae

About 70% of all modern snakes are representatives of this family. There are numerous types of snakes and their names. There are about 1,500 species. They are ubiquitous and adapted to life in burrows, in the forest floor, on trees, in reservoirs and in semi-deserts. These snakes have a variety of locomotion methods and food preferences. In general, this family is characterized by the absence of movable tubular teeth, a left lung, and rudiments of the hind limbs. Their upper jaw is horizontal.

Snakes of Russia

What types of snakes live in Russia? According to various sources, there are approximately 90 of them in our country, including 10-16 poisonous ones. Let us briefly describe the main types of snakes in Russia.

Already ordinary

This is a large snake, the length of which can reach 140 cm. It is distributed over a vast territory from Scandinavia to North America, as well as to Central Mongolia in the east. In Russia it lives mainly in the European part. Its color ranges from dark gray to black. Light spots forming a crescent are located on the sides of the head. They are bordered by black stripes. Representatives of this type of snake prefer damp places. They hunt mainly during the day on toads and frogs, occasionally on birds and small lizards. Already - this active snake. He crawls quickly, swims well and climbs trees. It tries to hide when detected, and if it fails, it relaxes its muscles and opens its mouth, thus pretending to be dead. Large snakes curl up into a ball and hiss threateningly, but they extremely rarely bite a person. In case of danger, they also regurgitate recently caught prey (in some cases, quite viable) and release a foul-smelling liquid from the cloaca.

copperhead

This snake is widespread in the European part of our country. Its length reaches 65 cm. The body color of this snake ranges from gray to red-brown. Dark spots in several rows are located along the body. The copperhead can be distinguished by its round pupil from the viper, which is a little similar to it. When in danger, a snake gathers its body into a tight ball and hides its head. A copperhead caught by a human fiercely defends itself. It can bite through your skin until it bleeds.

Common viper

This snake is quite large. Its body length reaches 75 cm. It has a triangular head and a thick body. The color of the viper ranges from gray to red-brown. A dark zigzag stripe runs along its body, an X-shaped pattern is noticeable on the head, as well as 3 large scutes - 2 parietal and frontal. The viper has a vertical pupil. The border between the neck and head is clearly visible.

This snake is widespread in the forest-steppe and forests of the European part of Russia, as well as in the Far East and Siberia. She prefers forests with swamps, clearings, as well as the banks of lakes and rivers. The viper settles in holes, pits, rotten stumps, among bushes. Most often, this type of snake winters in groups in burrows, hiding under haystacks and tree roots. In March-April, vipers leave the wintering area. During the day they love to bask in the sun. These snakes usually hunt at night. Their prey is small rodents, chicks, and frogs. They breed in mid-May; pregnancy lasts 3 months. The viper brings 8-12 cubs, each up to 17 cm long. The first molt occurs a few days after the individuals are born. Subsequently, vipers molt at intervals of approximately one to two times a month. They live 11-12 years.

Meetings between a person and a viper occur quite often. One thing to remember is that they love to spend time basking in the sun on warm days. Vipers can crawl to the fire at night and also climb into the tent. The population density of these snakes is very uneven. You may not encounter a single individual over a fairly large area, but in certain areas they form entire “snake centers.” These snakes are non-aggressive and will not be the first to attack a person. They always prefer to hide.

Steppe viper

This type of snake is distinguished by the pointed edges of its muzzle, as well as its smaller size from the common viper. The coloring of its body is duller. There are dark spots on the sides of the body. The steppe viper lives in the forest-steppe and steppe zones of the European part of our country, in the Caucasus and Crimea. She lives 7-8 years.

Common cottonmouth

This species of snake inhabits vast areas from the mouth of the Volga to the shores of the Pacific Ocean. Its body length is up to 70 cm, its color is brown or gray with wide dark spots located along the ridge.

Tiger snake

This is a brightly colored snake that lives in the Far East. Usually the upper part of its body is bright green with transverse black stripes. The scales located in the spaces between the stripes in the front of the body are red. The body length of the tiger snake reaches up to 110 cm. The nuchodorsal glands are located on the upper side of its neck. The caustic secretion they secrete repels predators. This type of snake prefers damp places. The tiger snake feeds on frogs, fish and toads.

Central Asian cobra

This is a large snake, the length of which reaches 160 meters. Its body color is olive or brown. When the cobra is irritated, it raises the front part of its body and inflates the “hood” on its neck. This snake, when attacking, makes several lightning-fast throws, one of which ends with a bite. The Central Asian cobra lives in Central Asia, in the southern regions.

Sandy efa

This type of snake reaches up to 80 cm in length. Transverse light stripes run along the ridge, light zigzag lines - along the sides of the body. The sand epha feeds on birds and small rodents, other snakes and frogs. The speed of the throws distinguishes the efu. It makes a dry rustling sound when moving. This snake lives on the eastern coast of the Caspian Sea and is distributed to the Aral Sea.

Titanoboa

This extinct species of snake is currently the largest among the other species that have ever inhabited our planet. Titanoboa existed more than 50 million years ago, back in the time of dinosaurs. Today, their obvious descendants are snakes from the subfamily Boas. The South American anaconda is their most famous representative. Although it is significantly inferior in size to Titanoboa, it has a number of similar features with this species. In the New York Museum you can see a mechanical copy of Titanoboa. About 15 meters is the size of this snake.

Pet snakes

The species of domestic snakes are numerous. Snakes are one of the most interesting creatures that are used as pets. Although they are ferocious predators, snakes can become docile if cared for.

The corn snake is a very popular pet. She is docile and easy to care for, but it is genetic diversity that makes this species so popular today.

The fact is that most individuals of this species suffered due to genetic mutations, such as albinism, and today have some of the most beautiful colors among snakes in the whole world. The royal python is also quite popular. This is a very obedient animal. The lifespan of this species reaches 40 years. The king snake is muscular with a strong body. It reaches 1.6 m in length. Boa is also popular. She is originally from Central America. This snake is a predator known for its ability to bring down large prey. Before eating the victim, it strangles it, and strong jaw muscles and sharp teeth help it swallow quickly. Boa reaches 2-3 meters at maturity. The colors and patterns of her body are very varied, but brown and grey colour. The boa requires a large terrarium made of thick fiberglass, which should be lighted and well ventilated.

So, we have listed the characteristic features that different types of snakes have, and their names with photos. Of course, this is incomplete information. We have described only the main types of snakes. The photos presented above introduce readers to their most interesting representatives.

Even in the century before last, an ordinary person could calmly settle in a peasant’s yard without fearing for his life. The villagers were afraid to kill an uninvited guest because of the superstitious fear of bringing disaster to their home.

Appearance, description of an ordinary grass snake

The reptile belongs to the family of colubrids, differing from its friends in the snake kingdom by yellow “ears” - symmetrical markings on the head (closer to the neck). The spots can be lemon, orange, off-white or completely invisible.

The size of the average individual does not exceed 1 m, but there are also more respectable specimens (1.5-2 m each). Males are much smaller than females. The head of the snake is noticeably separated from the neck, and the body is 3-5 times longer than the tail.

The top of the snake’s body can be painted dark gray, brown or olive, diluted with a dark “checkerboard” pattern. The belly is light gray or off-white, with a dark longitudinal stripe in the center. In some individuals this stripe occupies the entire lower side. Among the snakes there are both albinos and melanists.

Similarity to a viper

This is interesting! The benign snake has a few things in common with the poisonous viper: favorite places of relaxation (forest, ponds, lawns) and the desire to avoid collisions with people.

True, the viper is less likely to maintain composure and attack a person at the first careless movement.

There are many more differences between reptiles:

• it is longer, slimmer than a viper and has a smoother transition from body to tail;
• yellow spots stand out on the head of the snake, and a zigzag stripe stretches along the back of the viper;
• the snake has an oval, slightly ovoid head, while the viper’s is triangular and resembles a spear;
• snakes do not have poisonous teeth;
• Snakes have vertical or round pupils (similar to a cat’s), and vipers have transverse pupils, like sticks;
• snakes eat frogs, and vipers prefer mice.

In fact, there are many more differences (for example, in the shape of scales and scutes), but an amateur does not need this knowledge. You wouldn't look at the scales if there was a threat of a snake attack, would you?

Range, habitats

In northern latitudes, the common grass snake can be found from Karelia and Sweden to the Arctic Circle, in southern latitudes - on the northern coast of Africa (all the way to the Sahara). The western border of the range runs along the British Isles and the Iberian Peninsula, and the eastern border covers central Mongolia and Transbaikalia.

Snakes adapt to any landscape, even anthropogenic ones, as long as there is a body of water with standing or slowly flowing water nearby.

These snakes live in meadows, forests, river floodplains, steppes, swamps, mountains, gardens, urban wastelands and forested areas. When settling in the city, snakes often end up under wheels, as they like to bask on the asphalt. This is the main reason for the decline in the population of snakes in densely populated areas, although globally there is no need to worry about the number of the species.

Duration and lifestyle

It lives a long time, from 19 to 23 years, and the main condition for its long life is water, which is responsible for the scientific name of the species - natrix (from the Latin natans, translated as “swimmer”).

This is interesting! Snakes drink a lot and swim, making long swims without a specific goal. Their route usually runs along the coast, although some individuals have been seen in the open sea and in the center of huge lakes (tens of kilometers from land).

In the water it moves like all snakes, raising its neck vertically and bending its body and tail in a wave-like manner in the horizontal plane. During the hunt, it dives deeply, and when resting, it lies on the bottom or wraps itself around an underwater snag.

It searches for prey in the mornings/evenings, although the peak of activity occurs during daylight hours. On a clear day, the common snake exposes its sides to the sun on a stump, stone, hummock, fallen trunk or any convenient elevation. At night it crawls into shelter - voids from uprooted roots, accumulations of stones or holes.

Enemies of the common snake

If the snake does not hide before sunset, it will quickly cool down and will not be able to quickly escape from natural enemies, among which are noted:

• carnivorous mammals including fox, raccoon dog, weasel and hedgehog;
• 40 species of large birds (for example, storks and herons);
• rodents, including rats;
• amphibians such as frogs and toads;
• trout (eats young fish);
• ground beetles and ants (destroy eggs).

Trying to instill fear in the enemy, the snake hisses and flattens the neck area (pretending to be a poisonous snake), folds its body in a zigzag and nervously twitches the end of its tail. The second option is to run away.

This is interesting! Finding itself in the paws of a predator or the hands of a person, the reptile pretends to be dead or splashes itself with a stinking substance secreted by the cloacal glands.

Snakes constantly experience a shortage of reliable shelters, which is why they happily take advantage of the fruits of human activity, inhabiting houses, chicken coops, bathhouses, cellars, bridges, sheds, compost heaps and garbage dumps.

Diet - what does the average person eat?

The gastronomic preferences of the snake are quite monotonous - these are frogs and fish. Periodically, it includes other prey of suitable size in its diet. It can be:

• newts;
• toads;
• lizards;
• chicks (fallen out of the nest);
• newborn water rats;
• insects and their larvae.

Snakes disdain carrion and do not eat plants, but they willingly drink milk when they find themselves in a terrarium.

When hunting for fish, the snake uses a wait-and-see tactic, grabbing the prey with a lightning-fast movement when it swims close enough. Frogs are actively pursued on land, but they do not even try to jump to a safe distance, not seeing the snake as a mortal danger.

He swallows a fish dish without any problems, but eating a frog usually lasts for many hours, since it is not always possible to grab it directly by the head. Like other snakes, it already knows how to stretch its throat, but the angular frog is in no hurry to go into the stomach and sometimes breaks out of its supper mouth. But the executioner is not ready to let go of the victim and grabs him again to continue the meal.

After a hearty lunch, he can go without food for at least five days, and if necessary, for several months.

This is interesting! There is a known case when a forced hunger strike lasted 10 months. He was subjected to this test by a German naturalist who did not feed the experimental subject from June to April. The first feeding of the snake after the hunger strike passed without any deviations from the gastrointestinal tract.

Snake breeding

Puberty occurs at 3-4 years. The mating season lasts from April to May, egg laying occurs in July-August. The mating periods in different regions may not coincide, but they always begin after the end of the first seasonal molting (it usually changes its skin after catching and digesting the first prey). Cases of autumn mating have been recorded, when the female lays eggs after wintering.

Coitus is preceded by the intertwining of several snakes (a female and many males) into a “nuptial ball”, which results in the laying of leathery eggs in quantities ranging from a few to 100 (and even more).

This is interesting! If there are not enough secluded places in the population’s habitat, females create a collective storage of eggs. Eyewitnesses told how they once found a clutch of 1,200 eggs in a forest clearing (under an old door).

The masonry must be protected from drying out and cold, for which the snake seeks out a moist and warm “incubator”, which often becomes a pile of rotten leaves, a thick layer of moss or a rotten stump.

Having laid eggs, the female does not hatch the offspring, leaving them to the mercy of fate. After 5-8 weeks, small cones are born, 11 to 15 cm long, and from the moment of birth they are preoccupied with finding a place to winter.

Not all baby snakes manage to feed themselves before the cold weather, but even hungry kids survive until the spring warmth, except that they develop a little slower than their well-fed sisters and brothers.

Snakes tolerate captivity remarkably well, are easily tamed and undemanding in maintenance. They need a horizontal type terrarium (50*40*40 cm) with the following equipment:

• thermal cord/thermal mat for heating (+30+33 degrees in a warm corner);
• gravel, paper or coconut shavings for the substrate;
• shelter in a warm corner (to maintain humidity it is placed in a ditch with sphagnum moss);
• shelter in a cold corner (dry);
• a spacious container with water so that the snake can swim there, soak in water when molting, and not only quench its thirst;
• UV lamp for daylight.

On sunny days, additional illumination of the terrarium is not required. It is sprayed once a day warm water so that the sphagnum always remains moist. The snake's home diet consists of small fish and frogs: it is desirable that the prey show signs of life, otherwise the pet may refuse to eat.

This is interesting! Sometimes snakes are accustomed to defrosted foods. Colubrids are fed 1-2 times a week, large reptiles - even less often. Once a month, mineral supplements are mixed into the food, and mineral water is given instead of regular water. The water in the drinking bowl is changed daily.

If desired, the snake is put into hibernation, for which, with the onset of autumn, the lighting/heating time is reduced from 12 to 4 hours. After you reduce the temperature in the terrarium to +10+12 degrees and stop lighting it, the snake will go into hibernation (up to 2 months). The sleep you simulate will have a beneficial effect on the body of a rested pet.

The vast majority of snakes in question (more than 1,400 species) belong to this broad subfamily. They are characterized by a slender and long body with a small oblong head, more or less clearly separated from the neck, covered on top with usually 9 large symmetrically located scutes. The maxillary teeth are in most cases equal in size, or the most posterior ones are laterally compressed, noticeably enlarged and often separated from the rest by a small toothless gap. In most species the pupil is round, but in some it looks like a vertical slit or a horizontal ellipse.

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Within this vast group of snakes, almost all the main life forms are found - terrestrial, tree-climbing, burrowing, underground and semi-aquatic.

Genus Snakes(Natrix) combines medium-sized snakes, characterized by scales with pronounced longitudinal ribs. The head is well demarcated from the neck, the pupils of the eyes are round. The maxillary teeth increase towards the depths of the mouth; in some species, the last 2-3 of them are greatly enlarged and separated from the rest by a toothless gap.

All snakes are associated with bodies of water to varying degrees. They feed mainly on amphibians, reptiles and fish, and swallow their prey alive. They reproduce either by laying eggs or by giving birth to live young (ovoviviparity). This includes more than 60 species. Most of them are distributed in the Eastern Hemisphere; 20 species are found in North and Central America, one species in Australia, one in Tropical and Southern Africa, all others in Eurasia. There are 4 species in the USSR.

Common snake(Natrix natrix) is the most famous and widespread species of the genus. It is clearly distinguished from all our other snakes by two large, clearly visible light spots (yellow, orange, off-white) located on the sides of the head. These spots are semi-lunar in shape and bordered in front and behind with black stripes. Sometimes there are individuals whose light spots are weakly expressed or absent. The color of the upper side of the body is from dark gray or brown to black, the belly is white, but along the midline of the abdomen there is an uneven black stripe, which in some individuals is so expanded that it displaces almost the entire White color, persisting only in the throat area. Body length can reach 1.5 m, but usually does not exceed 1 m; females are noticeably larger than males. The snake inhabits North Africa, all of Europe, with the exception of its northernmost parts, and Asia east to Central Mongolia. Further than all other species of its genus, it moves north, on the Scandinavian Peninsula almost reaching the Arctic Circle. The southern border of the range runs through Southern Palestine and Central Iran. In the USSR, it inhabits the entire European part of the country, reaching South Karelia, the Perm and Chelyabinsk regions, Siberia, and to the east - Transbaikalia. It is also found in Southwestern Turkmenistan and Eastern Kazakhstan.

The habitats are very diverse, but certainly quite wet. Snakes are especially numerous along the banks of calm rivers, lakes, ponds, grass swamps, in damp forests and floodplain meadows covered with shrubs, but are sometimes found even in the open steppe and in the mountains. They often live in vegetable gardens, orchards, and barnyards and sometimes crawl into various outbuildings. In spring, as well as in autumn, when the soil retains a lot of moisture, snakes can move far from water.

Shelters for snakes include voids under tree roots, piles of stones, rodent holes, haystacks, cracks between logs of bridges, dams and other shelters. Sometimes they settle in basements, under houses, in piles of manure or garbage. In fallen leaves and loose soil, snakes can make their own passages.

Common snakes are very active, agile snakes. They crawl quickly, can climb trees and swim well using the lateral bends of their body characteristic of snakes. They can move many kilometers away from the shores and remain under water for several tens of minutes without surfacing. They usually swim with their heads raised above the surface of the water and leaving characteristic ripples behind them, so snakes moving through a body of water are clearly visible.

They are active during daylight hours and hide in shelters at night. They hunt mainly in the morning and evening hours. During the day they like to bask in the sun, curled up on the creases of reeds, stones, trees bent over the water, hummocks, and nests of water birds. In the hottest times, especially in the south, they hide in the shade or go down into the water, where they can lie at the bottom for a long time.

Mating begins at the end of April - May, after the first spring molt. In July - August, females lay from 6 to 30 soft, parchment-coated eggs in one portion, which are often glued together like a rosary. Eggs easily die from drying out, so snakes lay them in moist, but well-retaining heat (25-30°) shelters: under fallen leaves, in damp moss, heaps of manure and even garbage dumps, abandoned rodent holes, rotten stumps. Sometimes, especially when there is a lack of suitable shelters, several females lay eggs in one place. A case is described when over 1,200 snake eggs, arranged in several layers, were found under an old door lying in a forest clearing.

The embryo goes through the initial stages of development in the mother’s body, and in newly laid eggs, the pulsation of the embryo’s heart is visible to the naked eye. Incubation lasts about 5-8 weeks. Young grass snakes are about 15 cm long when they hatch; They immediately spread out and begin to lead an independent lifestyle. Young people lead a much more secretive lifestyle than adults and are rarely seen.

For the winter, snakes take refuge in deep rodent burrows, in cracks of coastal cliffs, under the roots of rotten trees. Sometimes they winter alone, often several individuals together, and they do not avoid the close proximity of snakes of other species. They leave for the winter relatively late, in October - November, when night frosts already begin. Awakening from hibernation occurs in March - April. On warm days, snakes begin to crawl out of their winter shelters and bask in the sun for a long time near them, sometimes gathering into balls of many individuals together. With each spring day, snakes become more active and gradually creep away from their wintering places. In Eastern and Northern Europe, winter hibernation of grass snakes lasts up to 8-8.5 months, in the south it is slightly less.

Common snakes feed on medium-sized frogs, toads and their young. Occasionally, their prey includes lizards, small birds and their chicks, as well as small mammals, including newborn cubs of water rats and muskrats. Young snakes often catch insects. The common belief that snakes feed on fish and are very harmful to fish farming is based on a misunderstanding. Small fish are eaten by these snakes rarely and in small quantities. Even in reservoirs rich in fish, snakes sometimes swim among such dense schools of fry that they literally push them aside with their bodies, and yet in the stomachs of caught snakes it was possible to find not fish, but only juvenile frogs. During one hunt, a large snake can swallow up to 8 frogs or large tadpoles of a lake frog. Frogs that are being chased by snakes behave in a very peculiar way: although it would be easier for them to escape with big jumps, they make short and rare jumps and emit a cry that is completely different from the sounds that we are used to hearing from them. This cry is more reminiscent of the plaintive bleating of a sheep. The pursuit rarely lasts long, and usually the snake very soon overtakes its victim, grabs it and immediately begins to swallow it alive. Usually he tries to grab the frog by the head, but often he fails, and he grabs it by the hind legs and begins to slowly pull it into his mouth. The frog beats hard and makes croaking sounds. It swallows small frogs easily, but it sometimes spends several hours devouring large individuals. If a snake is in danger, it usually belches, like other snakes, the swallowed prey, and opens its mouth very wide if the swallowed animal was large. There have been cases of snakes regurgitating live frogs, which, despite having been in the snake’s throat, later turned out to be quite viable.

Like all snakes, snakes are capable of going without food for a long time. There is a known case when a snake starved for more than 300 days without harm to itself. Snakes drink a lot, especially on hot days.

Snakes have a lot of enemies. They are eaten by snake eagles, storks, kites and many predatory mammals (raccoon dogs, foxes, minks, martens). Serious enemies of snakes are also rats, which eat clutches and young snakes. Snakes always try to escape from humans by running. Unable to crawl away, sometimes they (especially large individuals) take a threatening pose: they curl up in a ball and from time to time throw their heads forward with a loud hiss. When caught, they bite, but only in extremely rare cases, causing light, quickly healing scratches with their teeth. The snakes' only means of defense is the extremely smelly yellowish-white liquid they release from their cloaca. In many cases, a caught snake quickly stops resisting, throws out prey from its stomach, if it has been eaten recently, and then completely relaxes its body, opens its mouth wide and, with its tongue hanging out, hangs lifelessly in its hands or rolls over on its back. This state of “imaginary death” quickly passes if you throw the snake into the water or simply leave it alone.

Common snakes live well in captivity, quickly begin to take food offered to them and soon become completely tame. They need water for drinking and bathing.

Water snake(Natrix tesselata) is easily distinguishable from the common one, with which it is often closely adjacent. The color of its back is olive, olive-gray, olive-greenish or brownish in color with dark spots located more or less in a checkerboard pattern or with narrow dark transverse stripes. There is often a dark spot on the back of the head, shaped like a Latin letter V, pointing towards the head. The belly is yellowish to red, mottled with more or less rectangular black spots. Occasionally there are specimens completely devoid of a dark pattern on the body or completely black. Body length reaches 130 cm.

Water snakes are more thermophilic than ordinary snakes. They are distributed from Southwestern France east to Central Asia. The northern border of the range runs along 49-53° N. sh., southern - through North Africa, Palestine, North-West India. In the USSR they are found in the southern (steppe) parts of Ukraine and the RSFSR, Crimea, Transcaucasia, Central Asian republics, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. In some places they are very numerous: at the mouth of the Volga and other large rivers flowing into the Caspian and Black Seas, you can find up to several dozen of these snakes for every kilometer of the route. The sea coast and coastal islands of the Absheron Peninsula (Azerbaijan) are especially famous for the abundance of water snakes.

Water snakes, to a much greater extent than ordinary ones, are associated with bodies of water, outside of which they are very rarely found. They inhabit not only fresh but also highly saline waters; are also common on sea coasts. They swim perfectly, coping even with the rapid flow of mountain streams, and can stay under water for a long time.

Their shelters are voids under stones, rodent holes, dry hay, and sheaves of reeds. Water snakes are often brought into villages along with hay. They are active during daylight hours, especially in the morning and evening, and come out of the water to the shore at night. Until the sun warms up, the snakes are inactive. In the early morning, along the banks of reservoirs teeming with water snakes, you can easily see and catch many of these snakes, slowly crawling out of holes, curled up under bushes or settling right on the crowns of low-growing shrubs, so that their bodies sag in festoons between thin branches. When the sun begins to get hot and the dew disappears, the snakes perk up, leave their roosting areas and go into the water. They usually hunt in the morning and evening hours; during the day they love to bask in the sun, curled up on reeds, in the nests of water birds or on shore rocks. During the hottest time of the day, water snakes can hide under water for a long time.

Mating occurs in April - May. Eggs ranging from 6 to 23 are laid by females in one portion at the end of June - July; young ones appear in August. They overwinter in small groups (often together with common grass snakes) in cracks in the soil, rodent burrows, and rock crevices. Sometimes up to several hundred individuals accumulate in a place convenient for wintering. Typically, water snakes occupy the same wintering grounds from year to year and are reluctant to change them to others. With the onset of warm spring days, snakes begin to crawl out of their winter shelters and, curled up in a ball, bask in the sun for hours. By evening, the snakes again hide in their winter shelters. But with the onset of warm days, they become more and more mobile and gradually move to their summer habitats.

They feed mainly on fish. In the stomachs of medium-sized snakes, sometimes up to 40 small carp 20-30 mm long and small fish up to 12 cm in size were found. It is not easy for snakes to cope with large prey. Holding the caught fish tightly in its mouth and lifting it above the surface of the water, the snake rushes to the shore, where, having a solid support for its body, it gradually swallows it, always starting from the head. Too much big fish, which he is no longer able to swallow, he throws it right there on the shore. In addition to fish, water snakes eat frogs and tadpoles. Occasionally they also catch small mammals and birds.

Snakes can in some places cause serious damage to fish hatcheries and spawning and rearing farms.

In the 30s, the skin of water snakes in our country was harvested for the needs of the leather industry. In 1931-1932 on the Absheron Peninsula in Azerbaijan alone, 60,000 snakes were caught, and in 1935 - 11,000 pieces.

Tiger snake(Natrix tigrina) lives in our Far East in the southern part of Primorsky Krai, as well as in China, Korea and Japan. This is one of the most elegant and beautiful snakes of our fauna. Its back is dark green or dark olive in color (occasionally blue specimens are also found), mottled with more or less clear black transverse stripes or spots, gradually decreasing in size as it approaches the tail. In the anterior third of the body, the spaces between the black spots are painted a bright brick-red color. Under the eye there is an oblique black, wedge-shaped stripe, with its apex facing downwards, another black stripe runs from the supraorbital shield to the corner of the mouth. There is a wide black collar on the neck or one triangular-shaped spot on each side of the neck. The upper lip is yellow, the eyes are large and black. Length up to 110 cm.

These snakes live in damp places, near water bodies, and are found both in deciduous and mixed forests, and in treeless spaces. In July, females lay up to 20-22 eggs, young ones appear in late August - early September. The main food consists of frogs and toads, occasionally eating fish. Tiger snakes live well in captivity and quickly become tame.

Japanese already(Natrix vibakari), like the tiger one, is found in the southern part of Primorsky Krai, Eastern China, Korea and Japan. This is a small, graceful and very agile snake, not exceeding 50-60 cm in length. On top it is a uniform chocolate brown or brownish-reddish color with a greenish tint; the upper surface of the head, the front of the body and the ridge are darker than the sides. The upper labial scutes are yellowish; a light yellow stripe runs from the corners of the mouth to the back of the head. The belly is uniformly light green or pale yellow.

Japanese snakes are less associated with water bodies than tiger snakes and lead a rather secretive lifestyle. The easiest way to spot these snakes is under rocks, where they willingly hide. They feed on insects and possibly small frogs. The cubs appear in early September, their length is only 15-16 cm.

Viper snake(Natrix maura) gets its name from the dark zig-zag pattern on its back, giving this snake some visual resemblance to a viper. On both sides of the zigzag pattern, round dark eye-shaped spots stretch at an equal distance from each other. However, some specimens of these snakes are very similar in color to water snakes, others are completely devoid of spots on the back and have a single-color olive green or dark gray color. Found in Eastern and Southern Mediterranean countries. Its lifestyle is very similar to that of a water snake.

Fish and, to a lesser extent, amphibians constitute the prey of the South Asian fishing snake(Natrix piscator). This large snake, reaching the thickness of an adult’s wrist, is especially numerous in rice fields. A very strong, aggressive snake, very prone to bite.

Indian big-eyed(N. tacrophthalmus) is known for hissing loudly and strongly inflating its neck at a moment of danger, quite accurately imitating the threatening pose of an angry cobra.

Snakes of the New World differ little in their lifestyle from their European and Asian relatives. Unlike the latter, they are all ovoviviparous: water snake(N. sipedon) in the northwestern United States brings up to 60 young at a time.

In South America, where there are no representatives of the genus Natrix, they are replaced by a very close genus of cross-eyed snakes(Helicops). These animals got their name from the unusual position of their eyes, which are shifted high up and small in size. All cross-eyed snakes are semi-aquatic animals that never move away from the banks of rivers, lakes or swamps. They feed mainly on amphibians and fish. Their lifestyle is similar to our water snakes, but, unlike the latter, they are viviparous.

Keel-tailed cross-eyed snake(Helicops carinicaudus) reaches a length of about 1 m. The color of the upper side of the body is grayish-brown with dark longitudinal stripes along the back; the belly is yellow, covered with black spots. Distributed in Brazil, Northern Argentina and Uruguay.

TO genus of garter snakes(Thamnophis) is about 20 species of the most widespread and numerous snakes in North America; in the north they reach Canada, in the south - Mexico, where they are most diverse, and Central America. These are medium-sized snakes, rarely reaching a length of 1 m. They are especially characterized by extreme variability (polymorphism) in color and other external features. Typically, garter snakes have one to three yellow stripes along the back and two rows of dark spots on the sides of the body. It is not uncommon for the base color of the upper body to be blue, olive, brownish or a beautiful cream color.

They live near bodies of water or in damp, low-lying places, but some species, especially in the eastern parts of the continent, are also found far from bodies of water. Therefore, this group of snakes is sometimes considered transitional from the semi-aquatic real snakes (Natrix) to the terrestrial genera of the subfamily under consideration. They feed mainly on amphibians, less often on fish, crayfish, small mammals and birds, insects, and earthworms. All garter snakes are ovoviviparous and give birth to up to 40 or even 60 young at a time.

The most famous type is common garter snake(Thamnophis sirtalis).

Wolftooth genus(Lycodon) unites 16 species of small-sized snakes common in South and Southeast Asia. On each side of the upper and lower jaws of these snakes, the front teeth are separated from the back teeth by a wide toothless gap. The front teeth, the number of which varies from 3 to 7, sharply increase in size from front to back, so that the rear ones have the appearance of long, backward-curved fangs, which is where the name of the genus comes from.

Striated wolftooth(Lycodon striatus) is the only representative of the genus that extends into the USSR. Distributed in India, Ceylon and Iran, and here it lives in Southern Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Western Tajikistan. This is a small snake, not exceeding 45 cm in length. On top it is black or dark brown with white or yellow transverse stripes along the entire body; towards the tail the light stripes become more frequent. On the sides there is one longitudinal row of light spots, the belly is plain white or yellow, without a pattern. The head is barely demarcated from the body, the tip of the muzzle is bluntly rounded.

The lifestyle of this rather rare species is poorly studied. It lives in areas with semi-desert and steppe vegetation, including in the mountains and foothills, hiding in the voids under stones and cracks in the soil. It feeds mainly on lizards and is active only at night. In India and Ceylon it often lives in human buildings.

House wolftooth(Lycodon aulicus) is widespread in India, Burma, Indochina, the Malay Peninsula, Ceylon, and Indonesia. This small dark-colored snake clearly prefers to settle near humans and is constantly found in residential and commercial buildings, not excluding business districts of large cities. Wolftooths spend the day in various cracks, crevices, under the floor or under the roof, and at night they go out to hunt nocturnal lizards, mainly geckos, which are numerous in the south in human dwellings. This is a very lively, excellent climbing snake.

Close to wolf-toothed small genus dinodon(Dinodon) has 9 species, distributed mainly in the Eastern Himalayas, Northern Indochina, China and Japan. These are medium-sized, mobile, beautiful snakes that lead a diurnal lifestyle and feed on amphibians, lizards, small snakes and rodents. They reproduce by laying eggs.

One representative of the genus - eastern dinodon(Dinodon orientale) was recently discovered on the island of Shikotan (Kuril Islands) within the USSR. The main distribution area of ​​the snake lies in Japan south to the island of Kyushu.

The eastern dinodon reaches a length of 85-90 cm. Its head is black on top, without a pattern. The upper side of the body is light brown or brownish-red with black transverse spots along the entire body, the belly is light, with dark specks in the middle.

Another type of genus - red-banded dinodon(Dinodon rufozonatum) is widespread in the eastern part of China, Korea and, according to data not yet confirmed, is found in the southern part of Primorsky Krai and southern Sakhalin. This is a beautiful snake, black on top with red transverse rings, and yellow-fawn below. It is often found near water bodies, where it feeds on frogs and small fish.

Extensive genus of snakes(Coluber) includes about 30 species. This is a medium to large sized snake with a slender, elongated body and a long tail. The scales on the body are smooth or slightly keeled. The color is quite varied, but usually dim, with a predominance of gray-brown tones. The pupil is round; the teeth in the upper and lower jaws noticeably increase towards the depths of the mouth, and the two rear teeth are separated from the rest by a small toothless gap. Snakes are one of the most prosperous and widespread groups of snakes. Their evolution proceeded in the direction of acquiring the ability to quickly move on the ground. The North American species Coluber flagellum has the highest known speed of movement of snakes - 1.6 m/sec. These animals climb trees and rocks very deftly.

They feed on rodents, birds and their eggs, lizards, snakes, and amphibians. Large prey is strangled not by entwining it, but by pressing it to the ground with its strong body. They reproduce by laying eggs. Some species are very aggressive and are among the relatively few snakes that attack humans unprovoked.

Distributed in Southern Europe, temperate and tropical Asia, North, East and Central America. The fauna of the USSR includes 8 species.

Yellow-bellied snake, or yellow-bellied snake(Coluber jugularis), reaches more than 2 m in length and is considered the largest snake in Europe, as well as one of the largest in the fauna of the USSR. The color of the upper side of the body comes in all shades of olive color, without a pattern. The belly is yellow, fawn, sometimes reddish. There is usually a yellow spot around the eyes. Yellow-bellied, or, as they are called here, red-bellied, snakes from Transcaucasia are first olive, then reddish, brown-red, and in older individuals, cherry-red on top. The belly is also reddish in color with a pearlescent tint; in young specimens it is grayish-white with yellowish-red spots on the sides.

Distributed in Southern Europe from the Balkan Peninsula east to the Ural River, in Western Asia and Asia Minor. Within the USSR, it is found in Moldova, steppe Ukraine, the southeastern regions of the European part of the RSFSR, Ciscaucasia and Transcaucasia; There are isolated finds of the yellow-bellied snake in Turkmenistan.

Yellowbellies can be found in the open steppe, semi-desert, bush thickets near roads, on rocky mountain slopes and even in swampy places. During dry periods of the year, it often lives in floodplains and on riverine terraces. In search of prey and places for laying eggs, it sometimes crawls into farm and residential buildings, under stacks and haystacks.

As a shelter, it uses cracks in the ground, rocky screes in steppe ravines, rodent holes and low hollows. Usually snakes are very attached to their permanent homes and return to them, even after moving a considerable distance.

The yellow belly is active only during daylight hours. It feeds on rodents up to the size of gophers, birds and their eggs, lizards, and rarely other snakes. This fast and strong snake catches its prey on the move and often eats it without even strangling it; It kills animals that resist strongly, pressing it to the ground with its powerful body.

Emerges from winter shelters in late April - early May. Females lay eggs in the amount of 7-15 at the end of June - July, the juveniles hatch at the end of August - September. Up to ten or more individuals sometimes gather in the same place for wintering.

A distinctive feature of the behavior of the yellow-bellied snake is its extraordinary aggressiveness. If an enemy approaches, this snake often does not try to hide by flight, but curls up into a spiral, as poisonous snakes do, angrily hisses and rushes at the enemy; at the same time, it can make jumps of up to 1.5-2 m and strives to strike in the face. There are even known cases of an unprovoked yellowbellied attack on a person passing by. Naturally, the evil nature of the snake, combined with its considerable size, causes fear, and the animal itself causes general antipathy. Fantastic stories that exist here and there in the south of our country about giant boa constrictors chasing lonely travelers in the steppe are based on an encounter with a yellow-bellied snake. The yellow belly bites painfully, causing blood, but cannot cause serious harm to humans.

Olive snake(Coluber najadum) is much smaller than the yellow-bellied. Its length rarely exceeds 1 m, and is usually 60-70 cm. The color of the upper side of the body is olive or light brown; large eye-shaped spots are scattered on the sides of the neck and front of the body, surrounded by a dark and light double border. Decreasing towards the tail, the spots gradually lose their edges; behind the head, two or three spots are lighter than the rest and often merge with each other. This pattern is especially pronounced in young animals. The head is single-colored on top, with light vertical stripes in front and behind the eyes. The belly is yellow or greenish-white.

Distribute on the Balkan Peninsula and the islands of the Eastern Adriatic, in Asia Minor and Western Asia, Iran, throughout the Caucasus and in Southwestern Turkmenistan (Kopet-Dag). It lives mainly on rocky, sunny slopes, covered with bushes, and sometimes completely devoid of vegetation. Along with open areas of semi-desert or dry steppe, it can be found on the edges of forests, in woodlands, gardens, vineyards and ruins. It rises up to 1800 m in the mountains.

In terms of speed and swiftness of movement, the olive snake leaves far behind most other representatives of its genus. A frightened snake usually flees with such speed that it is almost impossible to follow its movements and, at best, all that remains is the idea of ​​a quickly flashing and disappearing gray ribbon. This speed is especially striking when the snake suddenly slides off the branches or stone, where it had previously been basking in the sun, and immediately disappears from view, as if dissolving among the stones.

It feeds mainly on lizards, and eats much less often small rodents and insects. He usually grabs lizards on the move, lying in wait for them in a characteristic pose with the front third of the body vertically raised, from time to time making slow wave-like movements with it. At the same time, dark spots with black and light edges on the sides of the neck camouflage the snake well against the surrounding background. Small lizards are usually swallowed alive, while larger ones are strangled by pressing their bodies to the ground or, less commonly, by wrapping rings around their bodies.

A distinctive feature of the olive snake is that, unlike other species of its genus, it lacks the ability to hiss. When in danger, he always tries to hide and is not particularly aggressive. It is active only during daylight hours; in the hottest months it goes hunting only in the morning and evening.

Multi-colored snake(Coluber ravergieri) reaches a length of 130 cm. The color of the upper side of the body is brownish-gray or gray-brown. Along the ridge there are brown, sometimes almost black spots or transverse stripes in one row, sometimes merging into a continuous zigzag stripe. Spots of the same type are located in one or two rows on the sides of the body. Along the tail there are three dark longitudinal stripes, which serve as a continuation of the body spots. On the upper surface of the head there is a group of small dark spots with a light border, sometimes merging into a more or less regular pattern, reminiscent of the letter M. From the back edge of the eye to the corners of the mouth there is an oblique dark stripe, another, shorter one, is present under the eye. The belly is grayish-white or pink, often with dark spots.

Distributed in North Africa (Egypt), Western and Minor Asia, Iran, Afghanistan, North-East India. In the USSR it is found in the Caucasus, Transcaucasia, Kazakhstan and the Central Asian republics.

Habitats are very diverse: sandy deserts and steppes, semi-deserts, rocky mountain slopes. Much more than our other snakes, it tends to stay close to humans: it is common in gardens, vegetable gardens, vineyards, a constant inhabitant of various kinds of ruins, and often also the roofs and attics of inhabited buildings.

It uses cracks and cavities between stones as shelters, and less commonly, abandoned rodent holes. There are observations that these snakes are capable of digging under stones and tearing up soft soil with their heads. To do this, the snake puts its head as far as possible under the stone, then bends its neck like a hook and, having grabbed sand and small pebbles, makes a sharp movement with its head back, scooping out the soil thus captured, which is thrown a few centimeters to the side.

Mating occurs in May. According to observations, in captivity, before mating, the male very actively crawls around a motionless female, crawls over her, moves her from her place and tries in every possible way to stir her up. After some time, the female perks up and begins to crawl around the terrarium; the male chases her and tries to bite her on the neck. Such games last for about an hour, after which the male overtakes his partner, quickly wraps his tail and back of his body around her, holding her neck with his jaws, and mating occurs. The snakes remain in this position for about half an hour.

Eggs ranging from 10 to 16 are laid by the female one at a time with an interval of 3-5 minutes. The young appear in September.

It feeds on various small vertebrates from amphibians to mammals inclusive. Small prey (mice, small lizards) is often eaten alive, while larger prey is preliminarily killed.

A snake disturbed by a person emits a loud short hiss and then silently disappears into the shelter. However, when caught, it bites furiously, often biting through the skin until it bleeds. In ordinary cases, bites of multi-colored snakes pass without a trace. However, if the snake’s saliva penetrates the wound in sufficient quantities and is absorbed, then a typical picture of snake venom poisoning is observed. A large male of this species grabbed the author deeply, until he bled, by the membrane of skin between the thumb and forefinger of his left hand. After 10-15 minutes, swelling began to form around the bite site, quickly spreading to the back of the hand, and then to the entire arm. I felt dizzy and had pain in the area of ​​the lymph glands in armpit. The painful condition and swelling were eliminated only by the end of the third day. In general, the poisoning was no easier than from the bite of a steppe viper.

The case described above allows us to understand how relatively small snakes can easily cope with large agamas, rats and other animals that they feed on.

spotted snake(Coluber tyria) reaches 1.8 m in length. Its general color tone varies from brown to light gray; more or less diamond-shaped dark spots stretch along the ridge, in between which there is one row of elongated spots of smaller size on the sides of the body. On the upper surface of the head is a diadem of two transverse dark brown stripes, which in older individuals are often broken into pieces. The belly is usually grayish, without spots.

This snake is widespread in North Africa, Western Asia, Western India, Central Asia and the southern part of Kazakhstan, where it lives in sandy and clayey deserts and semi-deserts.

Amid the oppressive heat of the desert, suppressing all living things, the spotted snake always pleases the naturalist's eye with its activity, the fresh shine of its scales and liveliness, so surprising among the hot sand and dust. Its refuges are rodent burrows, which snakes use for shelter both in the summer and for hibernation. It feeds on lizards, small mammals, and insects. The spotted snake is just as vicious and aggressive as the yellowbellied snake.

Striated snake(Coluber karelini) is a small slender snake, the largest individuals of which do not exceed 90 cm in length. On top, its body is light ash in color, often with yellowish or brown tint. A series of black and dark gray transverse spots with a blue tint stretches along the back; an oval slate-colored spot is present in the temporal region. The tip of the muzzle is noticeably sharpened.

This snake is found in Iran, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and the southern part of Kazakhstan, where it lives in rocky and clayey semi-deserts, fixed sands and foothills.

Red banded snake(C. rhodorachis) reaches about a meter in length. On top, the snake is gray, olive-gray or milky-coffee in color, usually slightly different in the front and back halves of the body. A narrow red or pink stripe runs along the ridge to the middle of the body, and sometimes to the base of the tail. If this stripe is absent, then the front half of the body has dark, narrow transverse spots that disappear towards the tail, between which there are smaller spots on the sides. The belly is light, without spots, the end of the muzzle is pointed.

Distributed in the United Arab Republic, Somalia, the Arabian Peninsula and Iran, Afghanistan and Western India, and within the USSR in Southern Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. It lives in the mountains and foothills up to an altitude of 2300 m, but is sometimes found on the plains, including deserts. It feeds on lizards, less often small mammals and birds. Wintering sites include cracks in the soil, ruins, and abandoned rodent holes.

Of the North American snakes, a large one is known black runner(C. constrictor), common in the southern and central half of the United States. This snake reaches 2 inches in length; in snakes living in the eastern part of the range, the upper side of the body is painted in a pure matte black color, while in those living in the southwest it has a bluish-green tint. Belly, yellowish or pure yellow. The favorite habitats of the black snake are the banks of reservoirs, swamps, wet meadows and forests. Like all species of the genus, it climbs, swims and dives well. It feeds on small amphibians, reptiles, birds, bird eggs and small mammals. Often attacks small snakes, including poisonous ones. Females lay from 3 to 40 eggs.

Very close to the snakes discussed above genus of big-eyed snakes(Ptyas), uniting 8-10 species, distributed mainly in South and Southeast Asia.

The most famous representative of the genus is big-eyed snake(Ptyas mucosus). This is one of the largest non-venomous snakes, excluding boas. Its length sometimes exceeds 3.5 m. The upper side of the body of the big-eyed snake is yellowish-brown or olive-brown, and sometimes black, usually with narrow black stripes in the back of the body and on the tail. The belly is grayish, pearlescent or yellowish.

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The big-eyed snake is widespread throughout almost all of South and Southeast Asia from Taiwan and the Malay Archipelago to Afghanistan and Southern Turkmenistan. On the territory of our country, it is known only in the Murgab River basin, where it adheres to a strip of oases, lake shores, irrigation canals, swampy river floodplains and other wet places, but is never found far from water bodies. Left without water, at a room temperature of about 30°, snakes invariably die after 3-5 days, but if they are given water, they live for months. In nature, big-eyed snakes escape the heat in the crowns of shady trees or in the water and, unlike true desert species, often drink. In the more humid climates of South and Southeast Asia, big-eyed snakes are very widespread and are found almost everywhere.

They climb well and swim well, raising their heads above the water. They feed mainly on amphibians, but do not neglect other prey that they can overpower: small mammals, birds, lizards and small snakes. Small animals are swallowed alive, and a close observer can sometimes hear the sounds coming from the snake’s stomach, made by newly swallowed frogs. There have been cases of attacks by these snakes on poultry.

Despite its large size, the big-eyed snake is non-aggressive and always tries to escape from humans by running. Deprived of the possibility of retreat, the animal fiercely defends itself: it curls up into a ball and quickly jumps into the face of its pursuer, trying to deliver a strong blow to its head and grab it with its teeth. An angry snake flattens its neck and front part of its body and makes very characteristic sounds, reminiscent of the hum of a tuning fork or the muffled cry of a cat.

In India, due to their impressive size, not always peaceful disposition and ability to flare their necks in irritation, big-eyed snakes are often considered “husbands of cobras.” This is taken advantage of by wandering snake charmers, who sometimes use these harmless snakes for their tricks instead of their poisonous relatives.

In South America, where there are no snakes of the genus Coluber, they are replaced by the closely related genera Philodrias and Spilotes. These are usually large, brightly colored snakes with a short head, weakly demarcated from the neck, and strongly keeled body scales.

The most famous of them is chicken eater(Spilotes pullatus), reaching a length of more than 2 m. This animal is unusually impressively colored and is considered one of the most beautiful South American snakes: bright yellow oblique transverse stripes run across the black and blue main background. Distributed from Southern Mexico to Northern Argentina. Habitats are very diverse: rain forests, bushes, swamps, mangroves, etc. Usually found near bodies of water, swims willingly and climbs trees well. It feeds on amphibians, small mammals and birds.

Very close to the genus Coluber climbing snakes(Elaphe). It is also a very large, widespread and thriving group of snakes, comprising about 40 species. They differ from snakes, in particular, in the structure of their teeth; their maxillary teeth are approximately the same size, and their row is not interrupted by toothless spaces.

Climbing snakes can be considered as a transitional group from purely terrestrial snakes to true climbing forms. Many species of this genus spend a significant part of their time in trees, where they find food, destroying bird nests, and in many cases, shelters in the form of hollows. They usually kill their prey by squeezing it with body rings. Many species readily feed on bird eggs and have special adaptations for eating them. When swallowed in the mouth, the shell of eggs is not damaged, and its breaking occurs with the help of the lower processes of the vertebrae (hypapophyses), which protrude into the upper wall of the esophagus, which is more or less fused with the tissues covering the spinal column. Several hypapophyses of the anterior vertebrae are directed back and down, the subsequent ones are directed forward and down, so that when the corresponding muscles of the body contract, the egg is squeezed between them and the hypapophyses press from above on the opposite ends of the egg, breaking the shell. The remains of the crushed shell pass through the intestinal tract and are then excreted.

Most snakes of this genus reproduce by laying eggs. Distributed in Southern and Central Europe, temperate and tropical Asia, North and Central America. Unlike snakes of the genus Coluber, they avoid true deserts and semi-deserts; Their greatest diversity is observed in the countries of Southeast Asia. There are 10 species found in the USSR.

The most famous among European climbing snakes is Aesculapian snake(Elaphe longissima). She received this name from her name ancient god healing of Aesculapius, who was depicted by ancient peoples as an old man holding in his hand a rod with a snake entwined around it. The daughter of Aesculapius Hygeia (by the way, this is where the word “hygiene” comes from) was also depicted with a snake drinking from a cup. Later, the image of this snake migrated to the well-known emblem of doctors. Many researchers believe that the modern spread of the Aesculapian snake in Europe in some cases can be associated with the history of the Roman conquests and colonization of Europe. Thus, in Germany, Switzerland and Denmark, these snakes are found in “spots”, far to the north of the main area of ​​distribution of the species, and the possibility cannot be excluded that they were brought here by the Romans, who revered them very much and kept them in baths and baths.

The color of the upper side of the body of the Aesculapian snake varies from yellowish-gray to dark olive and brown. There are no stripes or spots on the back of adult animals; only some scales have white edges, which together create a usually thin mesh pattern. The head is also colored uniformly, only on its sides from the eye to the corners of the mouth there is a narrow black stripe. The belly has dark small spots. In young specimens, four rows of dark spots run along the body, and on the neck and back of the head there is a transverse stripe curved in the shape of a Roman numeral V. The body length of these snakes in rare cases reaches two meters, but usually they are much shorter.

Despite the dull monochromatic color, the Aesculapian snake is very beautiful due to its smooth, as if polished body, grace and smoothness of movements, some special elegance peculiar only to it. Therefore, hobbyists are especially willing to keep it in captivity, and in Germany and Austria special “snake parks” have been organized where these snakes are carefully protected.

Distributed in Southern and partly Central Europe, Asia Minor, Northern Iran. Within the USSR it is found in Moldova, Southwestern Ukraine, Crimea, Krasnodar Territory and Western Transcaucasia. It lives on rocky slopes overgrown with bushes, in rocks, among ruins, in light deciduous forests. It moves relatively slowly on a horizontal surface, but it climbs superbly. The ventral scutes on the sides seem to be broken and form well-defined ribs on each side, which the snake uses to support itself when climbing on uneven surfaces. It can climb up thick tree trunks or stone walls almost vertically, leaning on protrusions and surface roughness; along thin and smooth trunks, without knots, it moves like a screw, wrapping around them. In a dense forest, these snakes easily move along the branches from tree to tree.

It feeds on mouse-like rodents, lying in wait near their burrows, as well as small birds. She quickly wraps the caught prey in the tight rings of her flexible body and strangles her.

Before mating, these snakes exhibit peculiar mating games. The male pursues the crawling female for a long time and, having caught up, wraps himself around her body, after which both snakes can still move quite quickly together. Then they simultaneously lift the front parts of the body vertically upward and, spreading their heads to the sides, freeze in place, forming a figure resembling a lyre.

Females lay 5-8 eggs in loose soil, rotting leaves, and wood dust.

Four stripe runner(Elaphe quatuorlineata) reaches a length of 1.8 m. The color of the upper side of the body varies from grayish-olive to brownish; along the back there is a row of slightly elongated rhombic or oval spots in the transverse direction, sometimes merging in places into a zigzag stripe of dark spots; There is also one row of smaller dark spots on the sides of the body. The top of the head is usually brownish-brown in color, from the eyes to the corners mouth goes tapering brown-brown stripe. The belly is light yellow, sometimes with small dark spots. Four-striped snakes, native to Southwestern Europe, have four dark longitudinal stripes running along their entire body, which is how this species got its name.

Distributed in almost all of Southern Europe, Asia Minor, Northern Iran, and within the USSR in Moldova, Southern Ukraine, Crimea, Transcaucasia, the steppe strip of Southern Russia and Western Kazakhstan to the Aral Sea. It is found in steppes, semi-deserts, rocky areas and along the edges of island forests; it rises up to 2500 m in the mountains. Rodent burrows, deep cracks in the soil, and heaps of stones serve as shelters.

This large and strong snake feeds on small mammals up to the size of rats, gerbils and gophers inclusive, birds, their chicks and eggs. Like other snakes, it kills its prey by squeezing it with tight rings of its muscular body. Swallows eggs up to chicken or duck size whole; in this case, the breaking of the shell occurs in the esophagus with the help of the elongated spinous processes of the anterior vertebrae, pressing on the swallowed egg from above.

According to the observations of T. A. Ardamatskaya, it can cause great damage to birds nesting in birdhouses and nest boxes. In one of the forest plantations of Ukraine, snakes destroyed 34 nests over two weeks, over which special observations were carried out. They robbed low-hanging (up to 1.5 m) and unprotected nests first, but there were cases of nests being destroyed at a height of 5-7 m above the ground. Having climbed into the birdhouse, the snake usually ate all the chicks located there or all the eggs, the number of which sometimes reached 8-9. As a rule, the snake, having dealt with the eggs or chicks, remained in the birdhouse to digest the food and, curled up in a tight ball at the bottom, did not even react to the appearance of a person. Repeatedly it was possible to catch snakes in the midst of a meal and literally take their chicks by force.

In search of inhabited nests, these snakes systematically examine birdhouses or nest boxes hung in the forest. Having climbed onto the roof of the birdhouse, the snake first lowers its head down to the entrance, and, not finding prey, crawls to the next tree. Birds, the owners of a nest into which a snake has crawled, react violently to the presence of a robber and always abandon their nests, even if there are live chicks left there.

Crawling up a tree, writes T. A. Rdamatskaya, the snake seems to be floating along the trunk or branches - its movements are so smooth. His body has great strength, holding his tail, he throws his head onto a branch 50-60 cm away from him, keeping his body extended in a horizontal position. A snake crawling towards a birdhouse and noticing a person instantly falls to the ground and seeks to hide in the grass, and with further pursuit it quickly crawls onto another tree. Much less often, he resorts to another method of defense: he moves to the very edge of the branch and hides here, stretched out on thin branches. From the ground, it can easily be mistaken for a dry twig.

In order to protect birdhouses from destruction, they began to be strengthened on a metal wire stretched between two trees. Soon, however, the snakes learned to reach these nests. The snakes crawled along the wire, moving in a helical motion, clinging to the wire with their tail and holding their heads above it.

Rodent burrows, deep cracks in the soil, and piles of stones serve as refuges for four-striped snakes. Mating of these snakes occurs in June. In July - August, females lay from 6 to 16 eggs, young ones appear in September. The hatching cubs first stick the tip of their muzzle and tongue into the hole made in the shell, then stick out their entire head and often remain in this position for more than an hour; if someone moves nearby, the animal draws its head back and only after a significant break looks out again. There are observations that the females of this snake show care for their offspring, which is so rare among snakes. They cover the masonry with the rings of their body and protect it from enemies.

Patterned runner(Elaphe dione) is the most widespread species of this genus in our country. It is found all over from Ukraine to the Far East, populating Southern Siberia, Central and Central Asia(where it avoids sandy deserts), the Caucasus, Transcaucasia and Southern Russia, reaching north to Zhiguli. This medium-sized snake (up to 1 m long) is easily recognized by its very characteristic dark pattern on the upper surface of its head. The color of the back is “marbled”, grayish or grayish-brown, usually with four longitudinal brown stripes along the body; along the ridge stretch narrow, irregular shape transverse spots of dark brown or black color. The belly usually has small dark spots.

It is found in forests (especially in the Far East), steppes and deserts, rises high in the mountains and is often found in populated areas. Willingly enters water, even sea water, dives and swims beautifully and can often be met on the shores of our southern reservoirs in the company of water or common snakes. The main food of this snake is rodents; less often it eats chicks and bird eggs. The snake strangles the caught prey, squeezing it with the rings of its body, and swallows it only dead, having previously moistened it abundantly with saliva.

In an excited state, the patterned snake makes rapid movements with the tip of its tail, which strikes the soil and surrounding objects, producing a peculiar intermittent sound, reminiscent of the sound of a rattle.

One of our most elegantly colored snakes is rightly considered leopard snake(Elaphe situla, or E. leopardina). Its body is greyish, light brown or fawn on top. A pale-gray or yellowish stripe stretches along the ridge, on the sides of which there are narrower stripes outlined by a black line; in other cases, along the back there is a row of dark brown, red-brown or chestnut spots elongated in the transverse direction, surrounded by a black border. There is also a peculiar pattern of dark stripes on the head. The belly is light with black spots or almost entirely brown or black. Body length reaches 1 m.

Distributed in Mediterranean countries (Southern Italy, islands of the Mediterranean and Aegean seas, the Balkan Peninsula, Turkey), and within the USSR in the Crimea and possibly in the Caucasus.

It lives in rocky foothills, usually overgrown with bushes or sparse trees, but does not avoid steppe areas. It feeds on small rodents, shrews, and less commonly chicks and bird eggs. At the end of June - in July, females lay 2-4 eggs.

Tolerates captivity well; There is a known case where a leopard snake lived in a terrarium for 23 years.

Transcaucasian snake(Elaphe hohenackeri) is distributed only in the Caucasus and Transcaucasia, and outside the USSR in Eastern Turkey and, possibly, Northwestern Iran. Body length does not exceed 75 cm. Brownish-gray or light brown on top; two rows of dark spots stretch along the back, merging in places into short transverse stripes. The top of the head is covered with small black specks; on the back of the head there are two characteristic dark spots connected in the form of pitchforks with narrowed edges extended forward. The belly is brownish-gray with numerous dark spots; in living snakes, it has a characteristic pearlescent sheen.

In comparison with other representatives of their genus, Transcaucasian snakes are rather slow snakes with pronounced climbing abilities. They live in thickets of bushes on rocky mountain slopes, among stones in mountain steppe, in sparse forests, orchards and vineyards. They hide under stones, in rodent burrows, as well as among branches and in tree hollows, often rising high above the ground. They feed on mouse-like rodents, after which they often crawl into their burrows.

Amur snake or Schrenk's snake(Elaphe schrenki) is a large snake, reaching a length of 2 m and the thickness of an adult’s wrist. The top is brown, often completely black, with yellow oblique transverse stripes, each of which is divided into two branches on the sides of the body. The head is uniformly dark. Only the upper labial scutes are colored yellow. The belly is plain yellow or covered with dark spots. Young snakes are colored differently: along their backs they have large, transversely elongated brown or brown spots with darker, almost black edges. In the back of the muzzle there is a brown arched stripe, bounded in front and behind by light stripes; another dark stripe runs along the sides of the head from the eyes to the corner of the mouth.

Distributed in Northern China, Korea and in the south of the Far East. It is found in forests, thickets of bushes, meadows, and often in villages, where it is kept under woodpiles of firewood, in piles of dry manure, under straw, in vegetable gardens, etc. The shelters of these snakes are tree hollows, old stumps, heaps of stones and rodent holes. . They have been repeatedly observed on trees at a height of more than 10 m above the ground. In search of sparrow nests, they easily climb onto the roofs of houses.

They feed on small mammals up to the size of a rat, small birds, their chicks and eggs up to the size of a chicken. Like many other climbing snakes, there is a special mechanism in the esophagus to break the shell. The swallowed egg is clamped between the lower processes of the vertebrae directed in opposite directions, protruding into the walls of the esophagus, and is crushed by contraction of the trunk muscles; At the same time, the crack of a breaking shell is clearly audible.

Females lay eggs from mid-July to mid-August in damp moss, fallen leaves, and piles of manure. The eggs are large in size and approach the size of chicken eggs; their number in a clutch varies from 13 to 30. The young hatch at the end of August - September, they reach a length of 30 cm and, unlike adults, are colored grayish-brown with a variegated pattern. According to the testimony of A. A. Emelyanov, the eggs of the Amur snake are edible and, “cooked fresh, resemble fresh non-acidic cottage cheese.”

In captivity, they quickly get used to humans and live well in a terrarium, eating live mice and chicken eggs. In China, these snakes are sometimes kept as pets because they kill mice and rats.

Red-backed snake(Elaphe rufodor-sata) brown or olive-brown above. In the front part of the body there are four longitudinal rows of dark rings and spots, which turn into narrow stripes in the back part of the body. On the upper surface of the head there are dark stripes in the shape of an inverted Roman numeral V, and a dark arched stripe runs on the muzzle between the eyes. The belly is yellowish with black quadrangular spots, sometimes located in a checkerboard pattern. Body length up to 77 cm.

Distributed in Eastern and Northern China, Korea and the Soviet Far East north to Khabarovsk. Unlike the species discussed above, it leads a semi-aquatic lifestyle and is found exclusively near rivers, lakes, ponds and swamps. Swims and dives beautifully. The food, like our snakes, is frogs, toads and small fish caught in the water. Ovoviviparous: the eggs laid, up to 20 in number, contain fully formed young that hatch a few minutes after the egg is laid.

Slender-tailed snake(Elaphe taeniura) is widespread throughout Southeast Asia from Assam to Taiwan; one specimen of this species was also caught on the territory of the USSR, in the Primorsky Territory, on the shores of Posiet Bay. This is a large snake, reaching more than 2 m in length. Light olive color above; along the back are two black longitudinal stripes, connected at regular intervals by black transverse lines. The head is monochromatic on top; a black stripe stretches along the sides of the head from the back edge of the eyes back to the corner of the mouth.

This widespread species can be found both on lowland plains and high in the mountains, at an altitude of over 3000 m above sea level.

In China, slender-tailed snakes are quite numerous in populated areas, including large cities such as Shanghai and Nanjing. They live here in houses and feed exclusively on rats, for which they enjoy protection and love from humans. Strong, but calm and leisurely in its movements, the snake soon becomes completely tame and is considered here almost a domestic animal.

Of the climbing snakes common on the territory of the USSR, we can also name small-scaled snake(Elaphe quadrivirgata), Japanese snake(E. japonica) and island snake(E. climacophora).

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Single finds of these species were made on Kunashir Island from the group of the South Kuril Islands, but their main area of ​​distribution is Japan. Interestingly, the small population of the island snake near the city of Iwakuni in Japan consists exclusively of snow-white albino snakes. There are about 2,000 of these animals, which are considered a local landmark and are carefully protected by residents.

Unlike climbing snakes of the genus Elaphe, American forest snakes(Chironius) already lead an almost true arboreal lifestyle. The body of these snakes is long and relatively thin, slightly laterally compressed; the tail makes up about a third of the total body length. The eyes are large, with a round pupil, the body color is dominated by green and olive tones* They are common in South and Central America.

Reaching more than 2 m in length zipo, or kutim-boya(Chironius carinatus), is locally one of the most common snakes in Brazil, Guiana and Venezuela. Its body is colored thick dark green on top, the underside is yellow or yellow-green.

It is found in dense bushes near water bodies and among swamps. It moves equally swiftly and deftly along the ground and branches, swims well and willingly goes into the water. The food of this snake consists of amphibians, birds, small mammals, and rarely fish.

When irritated, zipo can make long leaps towards the enemy and bite furiously.

Some tropical groups of grass snakes have most fully adapted to the arboreal lifestyle. The ability to climb trees and bushes to varying degrees is inherent in many snakes, but true tree snakes have come to live almost exclusively in the crowns of trees and bushes.

All specialized tree snakes are characterized by an increase in body length and a decrease in its thickness. This is explained by purely mechanical reasons: the more support points and the lighter the animal’s body, the better it is supported on vertical surfaces and the greater the distance it can be thrown between distant branches when moving along branches.

Since the relatively wide and smooth belly of a land snake does not cling well to irregularities in the bark, in arboreal forms the body is laterally compressed, and on the sides of its entire lower side there are, to varying degrees, pronounced longitudinal keels formed by the bends of individual abdominal scutes onto the sides of the body. The hard, hard surface they form along the edges of the belly allows the snake to cling to even the slightest irregularities in the bark when climbing, holding the body even when moving vertically up the trunk. The beautiful green or olive coloration of tree snakes is also adaptive in nature, camouflaging the animal among the foliage. Many species, with their color, as well as their thin body, imitate tree branches or vines, and bright spots and stripes hide them among the multicolored tropical vegetation permeated with the sun.

A particularly unique method of camouflage is found in Madagascar tree snakes(Langaha). These small size snakes have a long outgrowth at the end of their muzzle, cut along the edges, imitating the feathery edge of a leaf in color and shape.

Compared with terrestrial forms, in which the field of vision is quite narrow, the eyes of many arboreal forms are noticeably enlarged and vision is more perfect. In the most specialized tree snakes, the pupil is horizontally elongated and has the shape of an ellipse or slit, which contributes to the formation of a binocular field of vision.

Finally, many tree snakes tend to be ovoviviparous, which eliminates the need for them to come to the ground to lay eggs. In oviparous species, the shape of the eggs, due to the thinness of the body, is always very elongated in length.

A highly specialized group of tree snakes can be considered bronze snakes(Ahaetulla), which are widespread throughout almost all of mainland and island South and Southeast Asia from North-West India down to the Solomon Islands and northern Australia in the south and south-east. These are medium-sized snakes, not exceeding 1.5 m in length, and are unusually brightly and beautifully colored.

Bronze snake(Ahaetulla ahaetulla) has a brownish-bronze coloration above with a yellow-white stripe on each side of the body, narrow black-and-white thin transverse stripes running along the border of the ventral and dorsal scales, and a yellow or fawn belly. Elegant bronze snake(A. formosa) is olive-bronze above with blue or green spots and black longitudinal stripes on the sides of the body. The head is yellow-brown, the neck is red, the underside of the body is yellowish-green in front, dark green or brownish in the back, the same color on the underside of the tail.

The eyes are large, with a horizontally elongated elliptical pupil. Slender body relatively long and thin, slightly compressed laterally; the long and prehensile tail makes up to V3 of the total length of the animal. The scales on the body are narrow and elongated, closely overlapping each other, and only one row of wider scales runs along the midline of the back along the spine. Each abdominal and caudal shield, covering the underside of the body, bears sharp ribs on the sides, ending at the back with a small notch - a notch. In total, these ribs create a longitudinal serrated keel on the sides of the body, on which the snakes rely when moving through the trees. The belly between the carinae is slightly concave and looks like a shallow groove from the outside.

All 15 species of bronze snakes are exclusively diurnal animals, feeding on lizards and tree frogs. Among the branches, their movements are extremely dexterous and swift, but these snakes are also very agile on the ground. Ovoviviparous.

Very close to bronze snakes South Asian genus of tree snakes(Dendrelaphis). They differ from bronze snakes in the absence of an extended row of scales along the spine and in the details of the structure of the teeth. There are observations that these snakes are capable of making long gliding jumps. They reproduce by laying eggs that have a cylindrical, very elongated shape. The most famous species is Dendrelaphis pictus, found in India, Ceylon, Assam and Indonesia.

Very similar to them are common in tropical America. thin snakes(Leptophis), numbering 6-8 species. The upper side of the body of these animals is a magnificent bronze-green shiny color, sometimes with black stripes on the sides, and the belly is pearlescent yellowish or bright yellow.

Green snakes(Chlorophis) replace their Asian and American relatives in Equatorial and South Africa and are very close to the latter in appearance. There are 11 known species of these animals.

Genus of copperheads(Coronella) unites only 2 species, distributed in North Africa, Europe and Western Asia. These are small terrestrial snakes with a more or less flattened head, relatively weakly demarcated from the neck. Their body is dense, ridged, covered with completely smooth scales, devoid of ribs. The tail is short; the pupil is round.

Common copperhead(Coronella austriaca) is the only representative of the genus widely distributed in the USSR. Inhabits almost all of Europe, Western Kazakhstan, the northern part of Asia Minor, the Caucasus, Transcaucasia and Northern Iran. The length of the body is up to 65 cm. The color of the back varies from gray, gray-brown and yellowish-brown to red-brown and copper-red. Reddish tones are especially characteristic of males. Small dark spots stretch along the back in 2-4 longitudinal rows, which in some specimens almost merge with each other and are clearly visible, while in others, on the contrary, they are weakly expressed. On the neck there are two brown or black-brown stripes (or two spots), usually merging at the back of the head. The head is dark on top or has a characteristic pattern of an arched, front-cut strip in front of the eyes and a broken line passing through the supraorbital and frontal scutes. A narrow brown stripe runs from the nostril through the eye and further to the ear. The underside of the body is gray, steel-blue, brownish, orange-brown, pink or almost red, usually with dark blurry spots or specks.

It is most often found in dry hilly areas among bushes and forest edges, but can also be found in continuous forest, meadows and even in the steppe. It rises into the mountains to a height of 3000 m, choosing dry sunny slopes. Abandoned rodent holes, cracks under stones, and voids in rotten stumps serve as shelters. Avoids damp places and is very reluctant to go into water.

Copperheads' diet consists primarily of lizards, although they may occasionally eat small mammals, bird chicks, small snakes and insects. The copperhead strangles adult lizards by wrapping them in rings of its body so that only the head and tail of the victim protrude from the ball. Having strangled the prey, the snake gradually opens the coils of its body and begins to swallow it, usually from the side of the head. The copperhead is not always able to cope with large and strong lizards and not immediately. More often, however, the snake wins, which is greatly helped in this by saliva, which is poisonous to lizards and enters the blood of the prey. The copperhead eats small lizards, especially young individuals, alive, unerringly grabbing them by the head.

It is generally accepted that these snakes mate in the spring, shortly after awakening from hibernation. However, according to observations recent years, made in France, mating can take place in the fall, and the sperm are stored in a special seminal receptacle until spring, when fertilization of the eggs occurs.

The copperhead is an ovoviviparous snake: its eggs are retained so much in the mother’s oviducts that the young hatch at the moment the eggs are laid. The number of cubs brought by one female varies from 2 to 15. They appear in late August or early September. The length of newborns is 13-15 cm.

A characteristic feature of the copperhead is its ability to gather its body into a dense, tight lump, inside which it hides its head. Often, instead of fleeing, the copperhead takes the described pose and reacts to any touch only by greatly compressing its body. When disturbed, from time to time, with a short hiss, it throws the front third of its body towards danger. A caught snake often bites violently, and especially large specimens can bite through the skin until it bleeds.

In many places, these harmless snakes are considered highly poisonous and are unfairly persecuted and destroyed.

The closest relatives of copperheads on the American continent are king snakes(Lampropeltis). These are medium-sized reptiles covered with smooth scales and often brightly colored. Unlike copperheads, among them there are not only ovoviviparous, but also oviparous forms. These strong and aggressive snakes feed largely on other snakes, including venomous ones, lizards, small mammals and, less commonly, amphibians. They strangle their prey by wrapping it in the rings of their body.

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Common or chained king snake(Lampropeltis getulus) is distributed in the southern and middle parts of the North American continent from Virginia to California in the USA. Its coloring is very variable: on the Atlantic coast, snakes with a chain-like yellow pattern on a black background predominate; in the Mississippi River valley, whitish or yellowish spots on the back of the snake are scattered over a greenish background; on the Pacific coast, animals are common in which yellow spots run along the black or brown main background stripes or transverse yellow rings. The length of these snakes reaches 2 m. They live mainly in dense bushes and forests.

Small milk snake(L. doliata) got its name thanks to a widespread fable attributing to this reptile a love for milk, which it supposedly milks from cows in pastures. The adult animal is gray with brown spots, while the juvenile is shiny, bright, its color consists of a combination of black, red or yellow colors, forming regular transverse rings.

The so-called burrowing snakes there is a tendency to shorten the total body length. The body takes on a cylindrical shape, the tail becomes short and thick, and the head is weakly or not at all demarcated from it, so that the body of the animals has almost the same thickness throughout its entire length. The head undergoes the greatest changes - the only organ that snakes can use for digging. In the simplest case, the head is used as a drill, loosening the soil with rotational movements and screwing into it. In this regard, those scutes at the end of the muzzle, which take on the main load when digging, sharply strengthen and change shape. The intermaxillary shield is especially often enlarged and folded onto the upper surface of the head; the muzzle itself often acquires a pointed shape, and the mouth moves to its lower side. The eyes sharply decrease in size, the nostrils acquire a slit-like shape and are equipped with valves to prevent the entry of soil particles. In other snakes, the fusion or loss of part of the head scutes is observed due to the growth and fusion of the remaining ones, and the strength of the head is ensured by the compactness of the skull and the rigidity of the connection of its bones.

The most specialized forms switch to feeding on invertebrates, primarily earthworms.

Small genus of sharp-faced snakes, or litorhynchus(Lytorhynchus), has 5 or 6 species, distributed in the desert areas of North Africa and South-West Asia. These are small snakes, not exceeding half a meter in length, adapted to a semi-burrowing, secretive lifestyle. Their narrow head is almost not demarcated from the ridged, cylindrical body, covered with 19 rows of smooth or slightly keeled scales. The tail is short and thick. The end of the muzzle is pointed and protrudes strongly forward above the lower jaw, so that the mouth is located on the underside of the head. The nostrils have the appearance of slanting slits equipped with a valve, eyes with a vertically elliptical pupil.

Sharp-snout snakes live in places where sufficiently loose soil allows them to make holes by digging their heads into the ground, or bury themselves by shoveling sand onto themselves. They lead a strictly nocturnal lifestyle and only in the spring, after hibernation, come out during the day to bask in the sun. They feed on small lizards, which they attack at night in their shelters, on reptile eggs and insects. They often hide in termite mounds, where they often spend the winter. Female littorhynchus lay only 2-4 eggs.

Crowned Litorhynchus(Lytorhynchus diadema) inhabits the deserts and semi-deserts of North Africa. Sandy-yellow on top with reddish-brown or yellowish tones with transverse spots along the body and a characteristic pattern on the head.

Afghan litorhynchus(L. ridgewayi) is distributed in Northwestern India, Iran, Afghanistan and Southern Turkmenistan. The color of the upper side of the body is light brownish or brownish. Along the back there is a row of brown or dark brown spots, often outlined along the edges by a dark and light border. On the sides of the body there are the same, but smaller spots: the belly is light, without a pattern. Litho-rhynchs live in deserts and semi-deserts, using termite mounds and cracks in the soil as shelter. They feed on small lizards and insects.

North American is close to real snakes genus of horny, or silt, snakes(Farancia).

The only species of the genus horny or mud snake(Farancia abacura) reaches a length of 1.5 m. It is quite brightly colored in a shiny reddish-gray, gray-violet or steel color. Inhabits swamps, muddy banks of ponds and damp low-lying areas of the southeastern United States. Active only at night, especially during rains; daytime spends in burrows that it digs in moist, easily yielding soil. It feeds on worms, small salamanders, frogs and fish.

Horned snakes are interesting because they have a developed instinct for caring for their offspring, which is very rare among snakes. Before laying eggs, the female digs a bottle-shaped nest in moist sandy soil and connected to the ground surface by a vertical passage - the neck. Having laid eggs here in quantities from one to several dozen, the snake wraps itself around the clutch and does not leave the nest until the young hatch.

North American hog-nosed snakes(genus Heterodon) have three closely related species. These are medium-sized reptiles with a short and thick body and a wide head well demarcated from the neck. The end of their muzzle is characteristically pointed and upturned; along the upper surface of the muzzle from the tip nose goes well defined keel. This feature gives snakes an unusual and funny appearance, to which they owe their name.

Widely distributed in the United States from the southern states to the Canadian border. They feed on frogs and toads, as well as small mammals, birds, lizards, small snakes and invertebrates.

Pig-nosed snakes exhibit a very peculiar reaction when approaching larger animals or humans that are dangerous to them. At first, they behave very aggressively and try to scare: they flatten the front half of the body in half, greatly expand their neck and head, hiss loudly and make ferocious attacks with their open mouth towards the enemy. If the intimidation does not work, all the aggressiveness of the snake disappears and the second part of the performance is played out: the animal begins to writhe with its mouth open and its tongue hanging out, and when the convulsions end, it remains motionless on the ground with its belly up. A complete illusion of death is created: the snake does not react to touch, its body is relaxed and passively accepts the pose that is given to it. If, however, you step aside, the snake raises its head, looks around and, having determined that the danger has passed, turns over on its stomach and crawls away. In tropical Africa, hog-nosed snakes are replaced by swamp snakes of the genus Prosymna, which resemble them in appearance.

Small genus brown snakes (Storeria) is distributed only in Central America and Western North America. These are small, dull-colored animals, not exceeding 40 cm in length. Their body is cylindrical in shape with a relatively short tail and head, weakly delimited from the body. Only two or three species are known, of which the most common Dekay's snake(Storeria dekayi). The color of the upper side of its body is brownish or brownish-gray, with a wide light stripe stretching along the ridge. The belly is pale pink.

The snake Dekeya is moisture-loving; usually found near bodies of water, in damp places and clearly avoids dry open spaces. Active at night; during the day it stays under flat stones, under fallen leaves, railway sleepers and other objects lying on the ground. IN large number these snakes are found in villages and even big cities. They feed on earthworms, insects, millipedes, mollusks, slugs, and small amphibians.

TO genus Oligodon(Oligodon) include about 70 species comparatively small snakes, whose body length does not exceed 60 cm. They are characterized by a cylindrical body, a short tail and a slightly flattened head, weakly delimited from the neck. The end of the muzzle is blunted, the very large intermaxillary shield wraps far onto the upper surface of the head. The pupil is round, the scales are smooth or with weakly defined ribs.

The structure of the teeth is peculiar. In the upper jaw there are only 6-16 teeth that increase towards the depths of the mouth, and the rear ones are strongly compressed from the sides and resemble miniature dagger blades in shape. In the lower jaw there are 5-20 teeth, first slightly increasing and then decreasing in size; teeth of more or less the same size sit on the bones of the palate.

Distributed in South and Southeast Asia, one species reaches the southern borders of the USSR. They feed on reptile eggs, amphibian eggs and insects. All species appear to be oviparous.

Variable oligodon(Oligodon taeniolatus) is found in Ceylon and India, north to Balochistan, and in southern Turkmenistan, where only a few specimens of this species were found in Kopet Dag. The coloring and patterns on the animal’s body vary greatly, which is why this snake got its name. The individuals caught in Turkmenistan have a flesh-colored to light brown color on top. Along the body there is usually a series of dark transverse stripes or spots, which are often supplemented by four longitudinal stripes, lighter than the transverse ones. On the upper surface of the head and neck there are three dark transverse stripes, the first two of which have the shape of a Latin V and point forward. The belly is light, usually without spots.

The lifestyle is little known. In India, it lives in treeless mountains and foothills, rising up to 2000 m. It is often found in close proximity to human habitations, crawling into gardens, orchards and houses. It feeds on the eggs of lizards, snakes and frog eggs; in search of the latter, she often visits swamps. It also catches lizards that have recently hatched from eggs. Active only during daylight hours.

Closely adjacent to the oligodons is a small genus rhinocalamus(Khynchocalamus), with only 3 known species. They all lead a secretive and sedentary lifestyle, spending most of their time in shelters under stones or in the ground. Distributed in South-West Asia.

Rhinocalamus Satunina(Khynchocalamus satunini) is a small burrowing snake that until recently was mistakenly classified as an oligodon. In total, 10 cases of finding this rare species are known in the world, 5 of them on the territory of the USSR. The length of this snake reaches 36 cm. The body is cylindrical, the head is weakly delimited from the neck, the end of the muzzle is flattened. The color is bright orange on top, the underside is white or pinkish, which is due to the blood vessels visible through the integument. The head is light on top, with a black arched stripe in front of the eyes and a black spot on the crown.

Found in Western Turkey, Iraq, Western Iran, Southern Armenia and the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. The lifestyle is almost unknown. It lives in semi-desert on dry and rocky slopes; it rises in the mountains to a height of up to 1200 m.

TO genus Eirenis(Eirenis) includes 10 species distributed in South-West Asia and North-East Africa. Until recently, the Eirenis of the eastern hemisphere were united into a single genus contia(Contia) with related American species. Now this name is reserved only for the latter. Eirenis are small, up to 60 cm long, snakes with a bluntly rounded head, weakly delimited from the body. The scales are smooth and are located around the body in 15 - 17 rows. The teeth in the upper jaw are small, weak and approximately the same size, with the exception of the very front ones, which are smaller than the others.

Eirenis are relatively sedentary, nocturnal and crepuscular snakes leading a secretive lifestyle. They feed on small invertebrate animals.

Collared Eirenis(Eirenis collaris) above is olive-brown, brownish-gray, brownish-reddish or pinkish-beige in color, more intense along the edges of the body scales and lighter in their middle part. On the neck behind the head there is a brown or black transverse stripe (collar), occupying 4-6 rows of scales and especially pronounced in young animals. On the upper surface of the head of young snakes there is a more or less clearly defined dark pattern of spots and stripes, but in adult specimens this pattern becomes less clear or disappears altogether. The underside of the body is greyish, yellowish, cream or reddish in color, without spots. Distributed in Turkey, Iraq and Iran, and on the territory of the USSR in Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Dagestan. It is found both in open areas of semi-desert and on moderately steep slopes overgrown with sparse vegetation. It rises in the mountains to a height of 1600 m. It usually lives under stones or clods of earth, often finding refuge in insect holes and cracks in the soil. After hibernation, it appears in March - April. Until the first half of June, during the daytime these snakes can be found under stones and in other favorite shelters, after which until the end of September they are not found at all or in rare cases after rains. They feed on beetles, locusts, larvae of flies and ants, spiders, worms, centipedes, and woodlice. The female lays from 4 to 8 eggs, the young appear at the end of September.

Armenian Eirenis(Eirenis punctatolineatus) is colored gray, olive-gray, brownish and copper-red on top. Unlike the previous type, there is no dark collar behind the head. In the front half of the body there are 8-10 longitudinal rows of small dark spots and specks, merging in the rear part into straight longitudinal lines that continue on the tail.

Distributed in Southern Armenia and the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, outside the USSR in Turkey and Iran. It adheres to gentle, very rocky slopes and areas of rocky semi-desert with sparse dry vegetation.

Their lifestyle is reminiscent of the previous species. They feed on cutworm caterpillars, orthoptera, ground beetles and their larvae, as well as centipedes, spiders, and mollusks. The manner of eating prey is very similar to that of lizards: the snake moves its raised head to the side, and then, opening its mouth wide, quickly grabs the insect and swallows it by weight.

Persian Eirenis(Eirenis persica) differs quite sharply from other species of the genus in its thin body (its diameter is 55 times or more in length) and clearly flattened head. Lives in Southern Turkmenistan, Iran, Iraq, Punjab, Afghanistan.

Tame eirenis(E. modestus) is similar in color to previous view, however, there are no dark spots on the body. Along the back of the head there is an arched dark stripe, which has a conical protrusion in the middle, pointing backward and reaching the eye with a wide base; behind the nuchal stripe is bordered by a narrow yellowish or reddish edge. It is found in Georgia, Armenia, Dagestan, Turkey and on the islands of the Mediterranean and Aegean seas.

Striped Eirenis(Eirenis media) is characterized by the presence of dark transverse stripes or rows of small spots along the entire body. Found in Iran and Southern Turkmenistan.

Pygmy snakes, go calamaria(Calamaria), common in Burma, Indochina, South China, the Philippine Islands and are especially richly represented in the Greater Sunda Islands. About 70 species are known. These are very small snakes: the largest species, Calamaria occipitalis, living in Java, reaches a length of only 50 cm, and the length of the small C. smithii from the islands of Kalimantan and Sumatra does not exceed 10 cm. The body of the calamaria is slightly flexible, round in cross-section, equal in thickness pencil; the tail is short. The scales covering the body in 13 longitudinal rows are round, smooth, and overlap each other in a tile-like manner. The head is short, not demarcated from the neck, the number of large head shields is reduced compared to most other colubrid snakes due to their partial fusion with each other. The general “rigidity” of the head, necessary for digging, is also achieved by the compactness of the skull, the bones of which are fixedly connected to each other. The eyes are very small, with a round pupil, the mouth is moved to the lower surface of the head and is also very small.

Sedentary, sluggish and rather gentle snakes, adapted to a secretive lifestyle under fallen trees, stones and other similar shelters on the ground and, partly, underground. Active during daylight hours, feeding on earthworms, insects and other invertebrates; large species may sometimes eat small lizards. They reproduce by laying eggs. These completely defenseless animals serve as prey for many predators. Some species of calamaria have a peculiar way of protecting themselves from enemies. Their thick, bluntly pointed tail, not only in shape, but also in color, is completely similar to the head. In case of danger, the tip of the tail rises up, imitating the head of a snake preparing to defend itself, and the animal retreats, having, as it were, a “protected” rear.

Animal life: in 6 volumes. - M.: Enlightenment. Edited by professors N.A. Gladkov, A.V. Mikheev. 1970 .

With the onset of spring, a person tired of the winter cold is drawn to nature - to walk along forest paths, breathe in invigorating fresh air, barbecue with friends on the edge of a birch grove. But no matter what positive emotions overwhelm you, be careful - a snake may be hiding in the grass.

In our forests, there are mainly snakes and vipers - the former are harmless, the latter are poisonous, it is better to stay away from them, so before the spring-summer season, it is a good idea to learn how to distinguish these reptiles from each other.

How to distinguish a grass snake from a viper by the shape of its head

While walking through the forest, did you encounter an unknown snake? Stop and take a closer look:

• bright orange or white markings are visible on the oval head, the eyes are round, the pupil is bordered by a light iris - that’s it;

• the head is triangular, similar to the tip of a spear, in the upper part of which one can see dark brow ridges. The eyes are fiery red with a vertical pupil - in front of you is a viper.

How to distinguish a snake from a viper by color

The color of the skin will also tell you what animal you met.

• A poisonous snake has a zigzag pattern along its body made of triangles, which turns into stripes on its back, and its skin has a gray, blue, brown or black tint.

• The snake is covered with a longitudinal pattern with spots and specks, and the main color of the reptile is black-brown.

How to distinguish a snake from a viper by body shape

It happens that a snake is camouflaged between stones, and it is difficult to see it completely, but by looking at individual parts of the body, you can understand which individual has taken refuge nearby.

• A long elongated body, smoothly turning into a sharp tail, indicates that this is a snake.

• The snake is small, no more than 75 cm in length, the transition from the body to the blunt tail is obvious - a viper.

• Even if you determine that it is already hidden, do not tug at it with a twig or pick it up - the snake, in defense, may bite painfully or shoot at you with a foul-smelling liquid, which will take a long time to wash off.

How to distinguish a water snake from a viper

The water snake is confused with a viper due to the checkerboard pattern of the skin, similar to the triangular pattern of a poisonous reptile, and the absence of bright ears. But it’s easy to distinguish – it has a belly with yellowish rectangular spots, and marks in the form of the Latin letter V clearly appear on its head.

The viper does not try to attack a person, and its hiss is not a battle cry, but a warning. If you cannot avoid the bite, use our first aid recommendations:

• Place the bitten person’s head below body level to avoid disruption of brain function;
• suck the poison out of the wound (it looks like two bleeding spots) for a quarter of an hour, periodically spitting out saliva. At the end of the procedure, rinse your mouth with water;
• treat the sore spot with an antiseptic and apply a sterile bandage. Give the victim some sweet tea, give him an allergy pill, and take him to the nearest medical center to administer an antidote.

Instead of an afterword: when relaxing in nature, be careful not to step on or sit on a dormant viper. If you notice a snake from afar, you should not approach it - go your own way and your health will not suffer.

In the list of the most dangerous animals on our planet, this type of snake ranks 14th. Africans nicknamed her the “green devil” for her ability to attack a person completely unexpectedly. This is a green mamba!

External signs of a green mamba

The green mamba is a small, about 1.5 meter, dark green snake.

The head is oblong, rectangular in shape and separated from the body. Two large poisonous teeth are located in the front of the mouth. Non-poisonous teeth are found on both jaws. The green mamba's eyes have a large round pupil. They are constantly open, as they are protected by transparent shields, and not ordinary eyelids. The iris of the eyes is the same color as the scales of the skin.

Young green mambas, up to 7 cm long, are usually bright green or light green in color. Having reached a length of 70 cm, they darken and resemble an adult snake in body color.

The body color of the green mamba is shiny green with a lighter green-yellow belly. When the reptile bends its body, it shimmers in various shades of blue, green and yellow.

Distribution of the green mamba

The green mamba lives in forested areas along the coast of the Eastern Cape in South Africa. Found in Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia.

Habitats of the green mamba

The green mamba lives in forested areas of the African continent. Inhabits bamboo thickets, mango groves and shrubs in the coastal zone.

Peculiarities of behavior of the green mamba

The green mamba is an arboreal snake and rarely comes to the ground. It is perfectly adapted to living among branches and leaves. The camouflage coloring and body shape make the green mamba completely invisible against the backdrop of the lush greenery of the tropical forest. Therefore, it is not so easy to notice it. Usually the green mamba is located on a tree, taking the form of a green branch. Here the reptile spends all its time: sleeps, eats, and rests during the hot period. The green mamba is generally a shy, non-aggressive snake.

She attacks only when she finds herself in difficult situation or while hunting. The green mamba is active during daylight hours, but seeing one on the ground is extremely rare. Only when carried away by the pursuit of prey can it come down to the ground or when it is resting, basking in the sun.

Green mamba feeding

The green mamba feeds on rodents, birds, bird eggs, tree frogs and other small animals.

Green Mamba Reproduction

The green mamba is an oviparous snake. The female lays 6-18 eggs in the decomposing organic remains of plants in the summer. Young snakes are capable of producing venom and reach a length of 18 inches.

Green mamba - an insidious snake

The green mamba is especially dangerous for local residents during the collection of tea leaves and mango fruits. Due to the presence of this reptile in plantations, work becomes dangerous for pickers. The green mamba hides among the green mass of leaves on the trees; it would seem that people are unlikely to disturb the dangerous reptile, but the fact of the matter is that when a person looks for a snake underfoot, in the grass and on the ground, it rushes from above.

The snake attacks without warning, and there is little chance of avoiding the bite. The poison acts so quickly that doctors do not even have time to administer anti-snake serum on the spot, let alone bring it to the nearest medical station. The bite causes a burning pain. As it spreads, the snake's venom eats away tissue and causes necrosis of the limbs. Scars remain on the affected areas of the body.

When traveling to areas where mamba are likely to live, guides always recommend wearing tight, close-fitting clothing. For some reason, green mambas tend to fall from the branches by the collar. It is very difficult to get it from there, and the poisonous reptile manages to inflict a fatal bite.

It is extremely difficult to see this green snake in the dense foliage. But all the same, in the habitats of the green mamba, you need to behave very carefully, looking at the grass under your feet and at the dense crowns of trees. Local residents, when they spot a green mamba, advise not to take risks, but simply bypass the dangerous place.

Effect of green mamba venom

The green mamba is a poisonous snake. Its venom is a strong neurotoxic substance. In its deadly effect, it even surpasses the venom of cobras.

The green mamba quickly delivers a series of life-threatening bites. Therefore, the amount of poison that enters the body of a bitten person exceeds the permissible dose by 5-9 times. More than 40 people die every year in Africa from bites of venomous reptiles.

Therefore, it is no coincidence that the green mamba was nicknamed the “green devil.” But, despite all its negative features, there are lovers who keep a poisonous reptile in their collection, admiring the beautiful coloring of the skin.

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