In some cultures the snake is a sign of fertility and life, whilst in others it's taken to signify evil. What ever your personal opinion about snakes, it's fair to say that in the last 170 million years they sure have divided the critics. Let's slither into the cold, scaly, hard facts!

Venom

Venom is a toxic poison produced by an animal. Snakes quirt venom through their fangs  which can be used either in self defence or to hunt  prey. There are two types of snakes:

Nonvenomous
Most snakes are nonvenomous. Nonvenomous snakes either swallow prey alive or kill by squeezing.

Venomous

Venomous snakes mainly use it to kill prey rather than for self-defense. Some snakes' venom is toxic enough to cause painful injury or death to humans.

Shedding

The shedding of a snake's skin is called moulting. They need to shed their skin regularly as  they grow. They do this by rubbing their head against a piece of wood or a rock. This causes the stretched skin to split open. Eventually the skin peels off from its head and it crawls out, turning the skin inside out.

Senses

Snakes don't blink. Their eyes are lidless and protected by a transparent scale.

Snakes can't hear. They are deaf and 'hear' by sensing vibrations through their jaw bone

Snakes sniff with their tongue. They have a pair of organs on the roof of their mouths called the vomeronasal organ.  To smell through their mouths, snakes flick out their tongue and 'sniff' the air.

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