Top 10 Facts About Snakes

Top 10 Facts About Snakes

Snakes smell with their tongues.

Have you ever wondered why snakes stick their tongues out? They are probably trying to smell their surroundings as they use their tongue to do this.

Some snakes are venomous!

Some snakes can be very dangerous as they are venomous. They use their venom to kill their prey.

Pit vipers, boa constrictors and pythons can sense heat.

Have you ever wondered how a snake can attack it’s prey in the dark?

Snakes have hundreds of ribs!

Snakes can grow very long which means they have hundreds of ribs! That’s much more than humans. We only have 24 ribs.

They shed their skin.

Snakes shed their skin between 4 and 12 times a year. This is because snakes are always growing however their skin doesn’t grow with them.

Snakes hear using vibrations in their jaw bones.

Snakes can’t hear sounds like us. They use a bone called a quadrate which is attached to their jaw.

There are over 3,000 different species of snakes.

Over 3,000 different species of snakes have been found. That’s a lot of snakes!

The fastest snake can travel up to 12 miles per hour.

Snakes can travel really fast but the black mamba is the fastest. It can travel up to 12 miles per hour.

The longest snake is the reticulated python.

Did you know the longest snake is over 6 metres long?! It’s called a reticulated python.

Snakes have flexible jaws.

Snakes have flexible jaws so they can eat prey that are bigger than them. They then digest their prey with their strong stomach acid.