Snakes in Question: The Smithsonian Answer Book (2nd Edition)
George R. Zug, Carl H. Ernst, Richard D. Bartlett, Patricia Bartlett
Language: English
Pages: 266
ISBN: 2:00285043
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
This new edition of Snakes in Question has been completely updated to take into account the most recent research available, offering useful scientific information about snakes while dispelling many widely-circulated myths and common fears. Accompanied by 100 stunning color photographs and written in the popular question-and-answer format of Smithsonian's "In Question" series, the book tells how snakes breathe, hear, smell, and much more. It covers not only the life cycle of snakes but also explores such phenomena as the rattlesnake's rattle, the viper's hiss, and the snake charmer's secrets. It addresses common folktales about snakes (do snakes milk cows?) and describes giant snakes, both real and imaginary. The authors also give expert advice on such subjects as distinguishing venomous species from harmless look-alikes and keeping snakes as pets.
and offered helpful suggestions. Our wives, Evelyn and Pat, encouraged us throughout and occasionally lent a hand to type portions of the text. We appreciate the generous assistance of all, and thank them for making this a better book. We alone remain responsible for any remaining errors. SECOND EDITION With the continual appearance of snake books, often with more glitch than accuracy, Vince Burke recognized the need to update Snakes in Question in a more eye-catching format through the
climbing a ravine in India looked up and saw a king cobra crawling rapidly toward him. Before he could escape, the cobra lunged at him—and dived into a hole between his feet. There are no authenticated reports of snake attacks or stalking that were not attempts at defense or escape. Do Mother Snakes Swallow Their Young? Many people believe that mother snakes swallow their young to protect them, and some even claim to have seen it. In thousands of hours of observation of snakes, in captivity and
similarly broad range and habitat preference with the Indian banded ratsnake. Asian ratsnakes have suffered heavily from exploitation for the leather trade. KING COBRA The king cobra or hamadryad (Ophiophagus hannah) is the world’s largest venomous snake. These giant cobras are found throughout tropical Asia, from India eastward to Vietnam, southern China, and the Philippines, and southward through Malaysia and Indonesia. Hamadryads are not common anywhere, and are now considered rare in
farmer’s snakebite allowed a quick recovery. (S. Hendrix) The more rural the habitat, the greater the chance of encountering a venomous snake. The highest incidence of snakebite mortality occurs in Sri Lanka and India. In Sri Lanka, 5.7 individuals per 100,000 people die annually from snakebite. Nearly 70% of the bites occur to males during the harvesting season, according to de Silva and Ranasinghe (1983). Most of the reported bites are by the small hump-nosed viper (Hypnale hypnale) and occur
foraging. When foraging near the surface, snakes breathe frequently, once every 20 seconds to 2 minutes; the deeper they dive, the less frequently they surface to breathe. Similarly, a snake’s level of activity dictates its need for oxygen. A snake that is actively searching or struggling with prey will need to surface more often. Submergence times lengthen when an aquatic snake is sleeping or hibernating because metabolic activity slows. During such periods, cutaneous respiration (gas exchange