NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Simply Snakes Jill Frank February 2007 North Mississippi GK-8

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Snakes are Vertebrates  Vertebrates are animals with backbones. Your backbone is the bumpy bone that runs along your back.  There are several vertebrate classes  Fish  Amphibian  Reptile  Bird  Mammal  Which class do snakes belong to? Snakes are Reptiles!

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Why are snakes reptiles?  Snakes breathe air.  Snakes are ectothermic (cold-blooded)- their body temperature depends on the environmental temperature.  The body of a snake is covered in scales.  Many snakes lay eggs.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Are snakes slimy?  Snakes are not slimy.  Their body is covered in shiny scales that make them look wet.  They have modified scales on their belly that aid in movement.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Why do snakes shed their skin?  The scales that cover the snake’s body do not grow with the snake.  In order to grow, the snake needs to get rid of the old, small skin, and develop new skin.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 A Snake Shedding its Skin Rubber Boa

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Do snakes lay eggs?  Yes, some snakes do lay eggs.  The eggs are soft shelled.  Sometimes snakes can have twins where two babies are in one egg.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Can snakes hear?  Snakes do not have ears, so they cannot hear.  However, snakes can feel vibrations on the ground that accompany many sounds.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Why do snakes stick out their tongue?  Snakes have nostrils which they use to smell.  Snakes can also stick out their tongue in order to help them smell.  Snakes catch smells on their forked tongue which they bring into their mouth where there are openings to a special smelling organ.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 How do snakes catch their food?  Some snakes grab their prey and immediately try to swallow it. Their backwards pointing teeth help keep the prey in their mouth.  The snake will swallow its prey whole.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 How do snakes catch their food?  Some snakes grab their prey, coil around it, and squeeze it until it dies.  Then, the snake will swallow it whole.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 How do snakes catch their food?  Some snakes have special teeth, called fangs, through which they inject venom into their prey when they bite it.  Then, the snake swallows the prey whole.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 How do snakes move?  Undulation-body moves from side to side.  Concertina-tail grasps the ground and the head is extended, then the head grabs the ground and pulls the tail.  Rectilinear-body is straight and inches like a caterpillar.  Sidewinding-snake moves very quickly and in a very quickly and in a sideways direction. sideways direction.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 What is the smallest snake?  Blind Thread Snake  Lives in the Caribbean.  Could slither through the center of a pencil if the lead were removed.  Grows to less than 10 cm in length.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 What is the longest snake?  Reticulated Python  This snake lives on the continent of South America.  Can grow to lengths of 33 feet.  Although the longest, the python is not the largest. The green anaconda can be twice the weight of a similar length python.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Snake Adaptation-Camouflage

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Snake Adaptation-Camouflage

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Snake Adaptation-Camouflage This is the snake’s head. Can you see it now?

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Which habitat would be best for each snake?

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Snakes Common to Mississippi

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Common Garter Snake  Lives in marshes, meadows, woodlands, and hillsides.  Has dark colored body with three light colored stripes.  Can grow to lengths of 137 centimeters.  Can live up to 2 years.  Eats earthworms, snails, insects, small fish.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Southern Hognose Snake  Lives in sandy or pine woods.  Has a yellow to light brown body with red specks.  Can grow to lengths of 56 centimeters.  Can flatten their heads and hiss.  Eats toads and lizards.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Green Water Snake  Lives along the coast of the Gulf of Mexico.  Has a greenish or brownish body, with no real distinctive markings other than dark speckling.  Can grow to lengths of 50 inches.  Eats fishes, frogs, and tadpoles.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Corn Snake  Lives in wooded groves, rocky hillsides, meadowlands, and abandoned buildings.  Has an orange or brownish-yellow body, with large, black-edged red blotches down the middle of the back.  Can grow to lengths of 182 centimeters.  Eats mice, rats, birds, and bats.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Copperhead  Lives in wetlands and rocky forested hillsides.  Has copper-colored heads, and reddish-brown, coppery bodies with chestnut brown crossbands.  Can grow to lengths of 30 inches.  Eats mice, small birds, lizards, other snakes.  Has fangs that inject venom.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Cottonmouth  Lives in swamps, streams, marshes, and drainage ditches.  Has a dark olive or black body.  Can grow to lengths of 74 inches.  Eats fish, frogs, lizards, small turtles, baby alligators, birds, and other snakes.  Has fangs that inject venom.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Pigmy Rattlesnake  Lives in rocky and partially wooded hillsides, pine woodlands, along riverbanks, and marshes.  Has a gray, brown, or black body, sometimes even pinkish or reddish.  Can grow to lengths of 61 centimeters.  Eats mice, lizards, snakes, frogs, insects, spiders.  Has specialized scales on the tail that are used as a rattle.  Has fangs that inject venom.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake  Lives in flatwoods, and occasionally will swim to islands off the Florida coast.  Can grow to lengths of 8 feet.  Body is olive or brown with a brownish gray banded tail.  Eats mice, rabbits, and squirrels.  Has specialized scales on the tail that are used as a rattle.  Has fangs that inject venom.

NSF North Mississippi GK-8 References  Animal Diversity Web Accessed 9 February,  Annotated Budak Smilax. Accessed 9 February,  Barbados Free Press Barbados big snake hunt. Accessed 9 February,  Canadian Museum of Nature Nature of the Rideau River. Accessed 9 February,  Caribbean Herpetological Society Thread snake. Accessed 9 February,  Caribbean Island Terrestrial Habitats Seasonal habitats. Accessed 9 February,  College of Staten Island. Frank Burbrink. Accessed 9 February,  Crowley Museum and Nature Center. Reptiles. Accessed 9 February,  Cummins, R. Hays Tropical ecosystems. Accessed 9 February,  Dorling Kindersley Desert reptiles. Accessed 9 February, uk.co.uk/static/cs/uk/11/licensing/children.html uk.co.uk/static/cs/uk/11/licensing/children.htmlhttp:// uk.co.uk/static/cs/uk/11/licensing/children.html  Ecology Asia Sunbeam snake. Accessed 9 February,  Florida and Georgia Snake and Lizard Photos Florida water snakes. Accessed 9 February,  Henderson State University Nature trivia, hognose snake. Accessed 9 February,  Florida Museum of Natural History Green water snake. Accessed 9 February, GUIDE/Nerodiacyclopion.htm GUIDE/Nerodiacyclopion.htmhttp:// GUIDE/Nerodiacyclopion.htm  Iowa State University. Hognose snakes. Accessed 9 February,  Means, Bruce Around the world Accessed 9 February,  Microscopy-UK Red-tail boa constrictor. Accessed 9 February, uk.org.uk/mag/artnov04macro/pwsnake.html uk.org.uk/mag/artnov04macro/pwsnake.htmlhttp:// uk.org.uk/mag/artnov04macro/pwsnake.html  Missouri Department of Conservation Snakes of Missouri. Accessed 23 July  Nature’s Almanac How to hatch reptile eggs. Accessed 23 July  Nova Scotia Snakes. More snake facts and pictures. Accessed 9 February,  Reptile Review. Snake pictures. Accessed 9 February,  Rubber Boa Shedding. Accessed 9 February,  Silver Clay Serpentarium. Rat snake photo gallery. Accessed 9 February,  Timber Rattlesnake. Accessed 9 February  US Army Installation Management Agency. Venomous snakes. Accessed 9 February,  US Army Installation Management Agency. Venomous snakes. Accessed 9 February,  University of Georgia Crotalus adamanteus. Accessed 9 February,  Venomous Snakes of Texas Western cottonmouth. Accessed 9 February,  Warwick Mills Hunting clothes tested with live snakes. Accessed 9 February, Testing.html Testing.htmlhttp:// Testing.html  Wikipedia Snakes.