Even in the century before last, an ordinary person could live calmly in a peasant’s yard and not fear for his life. The villagers were afraid to kill the uninvited guest, thinking that they would bring trouble to their home.
Many people are still afraid of the common snake, considering it dangerous It is considered a snake belonging to the class of reptiles. Most people are afraid of snakes, but is it dangerous?
Characteristics of the common snake
Almost two-thirds of the snakes on the planet belong to the colubrid family. Today there are about one and a half thousand of them different types, and each of them has its own distinctive features.
And although the common viper and the common viper are very similar, the former differs from its poisonous relative in its peaceful and calm character.
Snakes used to be kept as pets instead of cats because they were better at catching mice and other rodents.
A couple of hundred years ago in Ukraine there was a belief that if you offend a snake, you will suffer bad luck. The name of the city Uzhgorod also speaks about the popularity of snakes., located on western Ukraine, which has remained untouched to this day.
Distinctive features
The difference between ordinary snakes and other snakes is their “yellow ears,” pronounced markings on the head, most often yellow, but sometimes white and orange. It is extremely rare that marks are absent or weakly expressed. Females are larger than males. As a rule, the length of the snake is one meter, but there are individuals that reach a length of one and a half meters.
The reptile has dark gray, black or light skin. gray. On individuals with gray skin, dark spots are very noticeable. On the light belly there is a dark stripe from the tail to the neck. The snake has round eyes, but there are individuals with a “cat-like” cut. The tail is 3-5 times shorter than the body and has a varied shape - sharp, steep, rounded. Some reptiles have smooth skin, while others have prominent ribs.
The description would not be complete without mentioning the reptile's teeth. Located at the top of the mouth, some of them enlarge when the pharynx opens. There are reptiles with immobile small teeth, and some have bent teeth. The tongue is already forked.
Reptile diet and life expectancy
Sometimes the common one feeds on insects, small birds and mammals. Favorite food - various amphibians:
- tadpoles;
- lizards;
- newts.
But still, the most favorite delicacy is frogs, which reptiles hunt at any time of the day or night. Where there are many snakes, the frog population disappears.
The lifespan of a reptile in captivity is no different from how many years it lives in the wild. As at home, the reptile lives in freedom for almost twenty years. Keeping such a reptile at home is not the best a good option , in this regard, it will be better if you get a less dangerous pet.
Reproduction in the natural environment
Reptiles can swim well and can stay under water for more than half an hour. As a rule, the mating season takes place in the spring in April-May and very rarely in the fall.
The mating courtship of snakes occurs without any complex elements; in one clutch, the female brings from eight to thirty eggs. To hatch eggs, she chooses the optimal place, for example, a pile of dry leaves, peat or sawdust. The birth period of the offspring is from one to two months.
The mating season begins in the spring
Reptile-human contact
The reptile has acquired the title of a good-natured animal, because it very rarely uses its teeth against humans, and besides, it gets along well with other animals.
The snake is easy to tame and does well in captivity. Having noticed a person, he tries to run away, and when he is caught, he actively defends himself: he begins to hiss and throw his head forward. If this does not help, he secretes a thick, foul-smelling liquid from the cloacal glands and pretends to be dead. Such imaginary death is a defensive reaction of the reptile. If the reptile is left alone or placed in water, it comes to life. The pungent and foul-smelling liquid kills the appetite of four-legged predators.
It rarely bites, and its bite does not cause harm to a person, except for minor scratches.
Dangerous Enemies
Before the sun sets, the reptile must hide, otherwise it will quickly cool down and will not be able to quickly hide from its enemies, and it has many of them:
To frighten its enemies, the reptile hisses and, pretending to be a poisonous snake, flattens the neck area, its body folds in a zigzag, and the tip of its tail twitches nervously. There is another option for salvation - he is trying to escape.
Such a number of enemies and dangers significantly affects how long a snake lives in the wild. Reptiles have a constant shortage of reliable, good shelters, so they take great pleasure in inhabiting human houses, chicken coops, bathhouses, basements, sheds, bridges, garbage dumps and compost heaps.
It is not without reason that we chose this title for an article about snakes, which, although they belong to the far from most pleasant class of reptiles - snakes, are nevertheless among all snakes the most friendly to people. This is evidenced by the fact that, for example, our ancestors, the ancient Slavs, revered the snake as a sacred animal, and many rural houses even had their own pet snakes, for which the villagers carefully left bowls of milk. In gratitude for this, snakes caught mice and rats in rural barns, and provided essentially the same benefits to the household as household ones.
Already: description, structure, characteristics. What does it look like?
The size of snakes can range from small snakes from 15 cm in length to quite large snakes with a length of more than 3.5 m. Moreover, interestingly, female snakes are always noticeably larger than males.
The head of the snake is small and in some of their species it is protected by symmetrically located and paired scutes. The body of this snake is slender and covered with scales, and in some species it is smooth, while in others it has longitudinal ribs. The snake's eyes, as well as its pupils, are round in shape.
The snake's tail is 3-5 times shorter than the entire body. In addition, it can have a different shape: rounded, sharp or steep.
But a snake’s teeth greatly depend on its species; in different snakes they can vary greatly in number, shape and size. In general, in most snakes they are sharp, small and motionless. But in addition to this, zoologists have discovered in some snakes smooth, articulated teeth, which tend to bend when eating hard food. Also in the mouth, in addition to teeth, there is also a forked tongue.
How long do grass snakes live in the wild?
IN natural conditions The lifespan of a snake can vary greatly, the fact is that due to the large number of enemies the snake has, they rarely live to old age. However, snakes in zoos live on average up to 20 years.
Where do snakes live?
Snakes live over a very wide geographic range, so they inhabit almost all of Europe, right up to the Arctic Circle, and a significant part of Asia. They can also be found in North and Central America, Africa, on many islands of Oceania, and one species of snake lives even in distant Australia. And, of course, snakes can easily be found in our forests; in general, most often they live in damp places where there is water nearby: near lakes, rivers, ponds, swamps. Although there are desert snakes that live in arid and sandy places.
Is it really dangerous for humans?
The snakes that live in our latitudes are absolutely harmless to humans. They are not poisonous, and also cannot bite at all; the most they can do is lightly scratch the skin. In addition, when a person approaches, all snakes try to hide as quickly as possible, and they can only bite when extreme cases, if he is driven into a corner. In any case, light scratches caused by snakes heal quickly. Having been caught by a person, he himself will try to imitate as a defensive reaction own death, his body will sag and stop moving, but when released into the wild, such a pseudo-dead will quickly come to life and hide in the bushes.
True, there are also types of snakes that can still cause harm, these include the tiger snake or the fisher snake; they have poisonous teeth in the back of the jaw and their bite can cause swelling or even be fatal.
How is it different from a viper?
However, we strongly discourage even trying to catch a snake, because it can also often be confused with another snake - a viper, which is by no means harmless, but on the contrary, poisonous and very dangerous. How is it different from a viper: we already wrote about this in our article about, follow the link, there is also information about this there.
What does it eat in nature?
Snakes, although harmless to humans, are nevertheless, like other snakes, predators; their main source of food is amphibians and fish. Frequent food for snakes are frogs and tadpoles, as well as small rodents: mice, rats, muskrats, squirrels. Sometimes, some small birds may come to them for lunch. Little snakes eat with pleasure large insects, earthworms, shellfish and various small fish. During a hunt, snakes, as a rule, make ambushes, guarding a potential victim, and then make a swift attack.
It is interesting that snakes do not even kill their prey, but directly swallow it alive, as if sucking it into their mouth. At the same time, swallowing small prey is not difficult for snakes, but the process of swallowing larger prey can take several hours.
After a hearty meal, one may well not eat for several days, and in general, snakes, like many other snakes, can go without food for a long time. By the way, zoologists even recorded a case where a snake went without food for 300 days.
Despite the fact that snakes are capable of starving for a long time, they will not last long without water; these snakes always drink a lot, and especially a lot in the heat.
Enemies of snakes in nature
The snakes themselves are also far from being at the top of the food chain, and can become prey for others large predators: foxes, minks, martens. They are also hunted by some birds of prey: storks, kites and eagles. Rats that are eaten by snakes also pose a danger, but not to adult snakes, but to their eggs and small snakes. Rodents often destroy snake nests. And, of course, humans pose a certain danger to snakes.
Snake lifestyle
Snakes lead a diurnal lifestyle, they love the Sun, especially to bask in its warm rays, to which they devote most day, with the exception of morning and evening, is the time for hunting. Snakes also know how to climb trees, even move from branch to branch, swim well and can stay in the water for a long time. Many people have described cases where they saw a snake, for example, in the middle of a large lake.
There are species of snakes that are burrowing snakes; they dig real tunnels underground, and desert snakes are very fond of burrowing into loose soil and shoveling sand onto themselves.
Where and how do snakes winter
With the arrival of winter cold, all the vital functions of these reptiles slow down, the snakes fall into hibernation, which begins in the fall and can last as long as 8 months, until the arrival of spring warmth. For wintering, snakes choose a secluded place that will not freeze during frosts. Often in such places several snakes can gather for the winter, and sometimes other snakes can even winter with them. With the onset of warmth, snakes crawl out of their winter shelters.
Types of snakes, photos and names
The common snake lives throughout Europe and a large part of Asia. It can also be found in North Africa. It is up to 1.5 meters in length. A distinctive feature of this species of snake is the presence of two bright and symmetrical spots on the back of the head. However, there are individuals with faint spots, or even no spots at all. Also among ordinary snakes there are albino snakes.
This snake is the closest relative of the common grass snake, although there are certain differences. This species is more heat-loving, so you won’t find it in the northern regions; it lives from the southwest of France to central Asia; it can also be found in the south of Ukraine, Transcaucasia, Kazakhstan and a number of other countries. As you might guess, the life of a water snake is closely connected with water, and they live not only on the coasts of rivers and lakes, but sometimes even the seas. They swim well, easily cope with strong currents, and can stay under water for a long time. Usually have an olive, olive-green color with dark, staggered spots and stripes. On average, the water snake is 1 m in length, although there are also larger representatives up to 1.6 m in length. This one is absolutely harmless, since it does not even know how to touch, but because of its color it is often confused with a viper and is mercilessly exterminated.
He is also a big-headed snake, lives in central Asia, Azerbaijan, Abkhazia, Georgia, and southern Russia. Lives in chestnut and beech forests. This species differs from other snakes in the wide concave surface of the head and the absence of light spots on the back of the head. It is 1-1.3 m in length. Swims well, and usually escapes from enemies by diving under water. IN Lately The number of Colchian snakes is noticeably decreasing and it is necessary to take protective measures to preserve them.
This one already lives in the Mediterranean countries, but you can also find it in the south of our Ukraine. These snakes live near ponds, rivers and swamps, and received their name due to their external similarity with vipers themselves. Of course, such similarity does not benefit the snakes, which are killed thinking that it is a viper, although it does not pose any danger in itself.
But the one that lives in Asia, including China, Japan, and Korea, still poses a danger, since it has a special poisonous secret that it uses in self-defense. Unlike its harmless relatives, this is already a real poisonous snake although the poison tiger snake not as strong as that of the same viper, or other poisonous snakes. It is up to 1.1 m in length. Another characteristic feature of this grass snake is its striped coloring, which resembles that of a tiger, hence the name.
This one already lives in the forests South-East Asia, lives on trees and bushes. Has a brown or bronze color, and a long tail, making up a third of the size of the entire snake.
This species lives on the American continent, in particular it is found in the eastern United States, from Iowa and Texas to Florida. It differs from other snakes in its small size - its length is only 25 cm. It has a brown color.
Despite the name, it lives not only in Japan, but also in a number of other countries. Asian countries, including Far East RF. Has comparatively small size– its length is on average 50 cm and has a uniform color: usually brown, chocolate or brown-red with a green tint.
How do snakes reproduce?
Like other snakes, snakes reproduce by laying eggs. Males snakes reach sexual maturity at the 3rd year of life, and females a little later - at 4-5 years. Their mating season begins in the spring, almost immediately after emerging from hibernation. Their courtship proceeds as follows: the male approaches the female, while shaking his head from side to side. Then he presses against her side, rubs against her, and wraps his tail around her. It is interesting that sometimes several males can gather around one female at once, forming a real mating ball, but unlike other animals, male grass snakes do not fight with each other, and only try to prevent a competitor from fertilizing the female.
Soon after successful fertilization, the female lays eggs. Snake eggs are covered with a white leathery film; it consists of many microscopic fibers, which are impregnated with a special sticky protein. The size of the clutch can vary depending on the type of snake, and, interestingly, these snakes can even make collective clutches that number up to 1000 eggs.
Snakes look for warm, secluded places to lay eggs; these can be heaps of humus, rotten stumps, orchard moss, even fallen leaves. The incubation period for grass snakes lasts 1-2 months, after which small snakes hatch into the world, which immediately spread out and begin to lead an independent lifestyle. Moreover, many of them die at a young age, as small snakes are eaten, including by their future potential food: toads, rats and mice.
- Snakes sometimes experience such a mutation that two-headed individuals are born. True, such unusual snakes do not live long.
- There are many tales about snakes in folklore, for example, that snakes allegedly hypnotize frogs before eating them. In fact, this is nothing more than fiction.
- Snakes are frequent heroes of many folk tales, in which they often act as guardians of treasures and treasures.
Oh, video
And in addition, another useful video about the difference between a grass snake and a viper.
The most famous and widespread species of the genus. It is well 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 snake’s body is from dark gray or brown to black, the belly is white, but midline An uneven black stripe stretches across the belly, which in some individuals is so expanded that it displaces almost all of the white color, which remains only in the throat area. The body length of the snake can reach 1.5 m, but usually does not exceed 1 m; females are noticeably larger than males.
Fig.1. Common grass snake (lat. Natrix natrix)
The snake's habitats are very diverse, but certainly quite humid. Snakes are especially numerous along the banks of calm rivers, lakes, ponds, grass swamps, wet forests and covered with bushes floodplain meadows, 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 snakes settle in basements, under houses, in heaps of manure or garbage. In fallen leaves and loose soil, snakes can make their own passages. Common snakes are very active, moving snakes. They crawl quickly, can climb trees and swim well using the lateral bends of their body characteristic of snakes.
Snakes 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. Snakes 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 on the bottom for a long time. Snakes begin mating 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 initial stages of development of the embryo go through the mother’s body, and in the newly laid eggs, the pulsation of the embryo’s heart is noticeable 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.
Snakes feed on small 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 suck 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.
Once caught, snakes 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, the caught snake quickly stops resisting, throws out the prey from the stomach, if it was eaten recently, and then completely relaxes the 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. 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.
Distribution area. European part Russia to the north to Lake Onega, the south of Siberia to the north to the 60th parallel, to the east - to the Eastern Baikal region and the Selenga valley. North-West Africa, Europe, Asia Minor, Palestine, Transcaucasia, Iran, South-West Turkmenistan, North and East Kazakhstan, North-West Mongolia, North-West China. Closely associated with waterway habitats, lives in damp places in meadows, near the banks of reservoirs, in gardens and orchards. Swims and dives well. It feeds mainly on amphibians, but sometimes eats small rodents, lizards or bird eggs. Snakes feel good in water and can remain without air for a long time while diving. Leads an active lifestyle - moves around a lot, climbs bushes and trees, swims. Hunts in the morning. The rest of the time it hides under bushes or basks in the sun. In July-August, females lay 6-30 eggs. Eggs are laid in a warm place that is well protected from drying out. Such places are a kind of “incubators” made of rotting plants or heaps of wet manure. Since there are few suitable places, different snakes often lay eggs in one place. For example, a case was described when 1200 snake eggs were found under one abandoned door. Young snakes emerge from eggs 5-8 weeks after laying. Winters away from bodies of water. In autumn, snakes hide in holes where they spend the winter.
How to distinguish a grass snake from a viper is an important question for tourists, berry and mushroom gatherers. Is it possible to quickly determine how dangerous a creature you meet on a forest path is? In Russian forests there are many species of poisonous and non-venomous snakes, which differ from each other appearance and character, but they all have one common feature– they never attack a person first; on the contrary, they try in every possible way to avoid contact with people, and when meeting them, move as far away from them as possible. Therefore, you need to move through a forest or clearing with caution; perhaps the place you have chosen for relaxation and walking is home for someone.
How is it different from a viper? Let's name the main similarities and differences between the viper and the grass snake.
External signs
The snake and the viper - the differences and similarities are understandable only to serpentologists who willingly share their knowledge and observations with others. At first glance, the similarity between snakes and vipers is obvious, and in both cases we see in front of us a long, crawling reptile. It is not easy for a non-specialist to determine the difference between them. If these two types of snakes are nearby, it is easier to compare them, but when separate consideration it is much more difficult to determine who exactly you met on your way.
Most main feature What distinguishes a snake from a viper is the presence of yellow semicircular spots at the base of the head, which can be mistaken for ears. However, not all snakes have such spots; they may be absent altogether, or may not stand out much against the background of the rest of the color.
These two amphibians different shape heads. The viper has a spear-shaped head, while the snake has an oval, egg-shaped head. However, if it gets really angry, it begins to flatten its head to scare the enemy. Another difference is that the viper has distinct arches above its eyes, extending from its neck.
There is also a difference in the pupils of the eyes, although extreme conditions It is not always possible to look closely at these small signs. The snake's pupils are always round, while the viper's pupils are in the form of thin vertical lines. The eyes of snakes are distinguished by the presence of an iris, which is compatible in color with the general color of the body, and they have good vision. Whereas the viper has poor eyesight and does not see well. The approach of a person or animal is indicated to her by vibrations of the soil, which she is able to sensitively detect. Venomous snake attacks are no different high accuracy To hit the target she has to make several lunges. To produce poison in its body, the viper has to expend too much energy, so it spends the poison sparingly, which explains its reluctance to attack everyone and at any opportunity.
The shape of the scutes of the two amphibians also differs. In snakes they are large, regular in shape, located symmetrically and cover almost the entire head. And vipers have three small scutes of any shape, and they are located on the front of the crown.
Another difference between a viper and a grass snake is the color of its body. Although in nature there are a great variety of poisonous and non-venomous snakes with patterns of various shapes and colors, therefore this method does not always allow one to quickly determine the type of reptile.
The most important thing to remember is that the viper has a continuous zigzag stripe made up of triangles along its back. In snakes, the pattern consists of longitudinal rows consisting of specks and spots that make up a noticeable pattern. At the same time, the black viper has no pattern at all, while the black snake has a pattern made up of small yellowish spots and forms a kind of mesh.
In addition, the water snake has light and dark spots in a checkerboard pattern that can be confused with the zigzag pattern of a viper.
The color tone of snakes can also be different - brown, olive or black. Some snakes are indeed difficult to distinguish from poisonous snakes by their color; this helps them protect themselves from attacks by humans and some predatory animals.
The viper's body is thicker and denser, but shorter than that of the snake. And their tail is very different in thickness from the body - it is short, blunt and lighter than the body. In addition, it has a yellowish tint. In snakes, the body smoothly transitions to the tail, which is thin and long.
The shape of the scales is a feature that distinguishes venomous snakes from non-venomous ones. A small keel in the form of a narrow protrusion on each scale, which divides it in half, is present in both snakes and vipers. But in poisonous reptiles, the keel does not divide the scales into two parts, leaving it intact. Whereas in non-poisonous ones it divides the scales into two parts. This method of distinguishing a viper from a snake is also not easy and simple in conditions wildlife. It is possible to carefully study the structure of scales in reptiles only with close range, which is not always safe to reduce.
Poisonous teeth - this feature is found only in vipers. But they can also be identified only by picking up the reptile. A non-specialist can study the structure of the jaws only on a dead animal, but even in this case, care must be taken, even a dead viper remains dangerous for some time, the poison in its teeth remains for a long time, if you prick yourself on them, poisoning can occur.
In order to reveal the teeth, you need to press the jaws from the sides and slightly pull the skin off the head. The fangs with poison are located in front, they can be noticed first. Snakes do not have poisonous teeth at all.
Body length – as a rule, vipers are not very long. Their length rarely exceeds 1 meter, and is generally 80 cm. Males weigh about 200 grams, and females weigh about half a kilogram. Snakes can grow up to one and a half meters, while their weight is small - 700-800 grams.
The abdominal scutes also differ between vipers and grass snakes. The abdomen of vipers is dark gray or black, the scutes on it are covered with yellowish spots of various shapes. In snakes, the abdomen is divided into three parts: the upper one, immediately from the head, is light; middle – variegated; the lower one is a uniform black color. The water snake may have whitish or orange spots on its abdominal scutes.
There are species of snakes that have their own characteristics, for example, water snakes. These are heat-loving reptiles that live in warm regions in fresh or salt water. They feed on fish, shrimp, frogs, and small waterfowl.
The color of water snakes is dark green, brown, olive, grayish. But they almost always have dark spots on their backs, arranged in a checkerboard pattern. The abdomen is yellow or reddish with black spots.
Already Differences in diet and lifestyle
Snakes and vipers differ from each other not only external signs, but also diet and lifestyle. For example, snakes readily climb trees, while vipers prefer to stay on the ground. Vipers do not lay eggs, they are viviparous, while snakes reproduce from eggs, which they lay in rotting plant debris, wet moss, and burrows.
In fact, viper cubs also emerge from eggs, but this entire process, from the birth of eggs to the appearance of snakes, occurs in the mother’s womb. The mother carries her 8-12 cubs within herself from start to finish.
Snakes, and not only aquatic species, prefer to settle near water - in swamps, in the floodplains of rivers and lakes, near ponds. Therefore, they feed mainly on fish and small water inhabitants, swallowing them alive without first killing them.
Doesn't hurt a person fatal bites, and when in danger, tries to convince or pretend to be dead. But when caught, he will try to secrete a liquid with a disgusting odor from the cloacal glands - this is his only defense against enemies.
Surprisingly, snakes can be tamed and domesticated. At home they are kept for hunting rodents and fed with milk from domestic animals.
Vipers have adapted well to life in swamps, mountains, steppes, deserts, semi-deserts and mixed forests.
The viper lives in one area and does not like to move long distances. Only when leaving for the winter do snakes crawl away to a distance of up to five kilometers, gathering into large balls numbering 2-3 hundred individuals. For the winter, vipers climb into holes and crevices, and in the spring they begin to crawl up and crawl back to their former habitats.
The viper feeds on mice, lizards, bird eggs, and chicks. The diet of young snakes consists of insects - slugs, snails, caterpillars, locusts, beetles, butterflies, worms, ants.
If bitten by a viper
Viper venom is dangerous for humans, but with proper treatment it will not cause fatal outcome. In 70% of bites, people do not feel them at all serious symptoms, or they only feel pain at the bite sites.
In case of severe poisoning, nausea, vomiting, dizziness, and diarrhea begin. The pressure rises, the skin turns pale, heart rhythms are disturbed, and all signs of tachycardia appear.
Less often it comes to loss of consciousness and a significant decrease in blood pressure. Kidney failure appears, convulsions begin, and the person falls into a coma.
At mild poisoning a person can independently recover from a bite in 3-4 days. In severe cases, the consequences can be felt within a year. In any case, you need to contact the clinic.
Before going to the hospital, the person bitten should be given more water, apply a tight bandage to the bite site, but do not tourniquet, try not to move the injured limb so that the poison does not spread throughout the body.
Class — Reptiles
Squad — Scaly
Family — Colubrida snakes
Genus/Species — Natrix natrix.
An ordinary one (see photo)
Basic data:
DIMENSIONS
Length: male 60-80 cm, female 50-150 cm. Maximum confirmed length: 200 cm.
REPRODUCTION
Puberty: from 5 years old.
Mating season: from April.
Number of eggs: up to 30; the older the female, the more eggs in the clutch.
Incubation: 42-70 days.
LIFE STYLE
Habits: snakes gather in damp places; active during the day, sleep in a dry place at night; They spend the winter in a state of torpor.
What it eats: frogs, reptiles, fish and mammals.
Lifespan: about 9 years old.
RELATED SPECIES
The closest relatives are already aquatic ( Natrix tesselata) and the viper snake (Natrix maura) - also non-poisonous.
The water snake, unlike the usual one, is mainly found in and near bodies of water.
The common snake is non-venomous, but is often confused with the poisonous common viper and killed for no reason. The common snake is quite easy to distinguish from the viper, because these snakes have completely different patterns on their backs - the snake has light spots on the sides of its head. In addition, it is almost twice as long as a viper.
WHAT DOES IT EAT?
The common grass snake feeds on frogs, newts, salamanders, fish, lizards and small rodents.
It also eats birds, bird eggs and chicks. However, he rarely manages to catch such prey.
The common fish hunts on land, as well as in the water in which it swims, making wave-like movements with its body. Small prey - tadpoles, newts or small fish - is swallowed in the water, and large prey is eaten on land. To search for prey, it uses its sensitive sense of smell. He analyzes odor impulses using the tongue and the so-called Jacobson's organ.
When approaching, it quickly grabs the prey with its teeth. Its jaw bones are attached to the skull by movable ligaments, so they are very elastic. After it pushes the head of the prey into the throat, it swallows the part that remains, gradually moving its jaws along the victim’s body. Digesting large prey always takes a long time, so after eating it tends to retire to a quiet place where no one will disturb it. If he doesn’t move much, he can go without food for a week.
LIFESTYLE
The common grass snake is active during the day and is found in damp areas - in meadows, thickets of bushes and forest clearings.
At night he usually sleeps in a dry, comfortable place. It often basks in the sun, thus raising its body temperature.
Sometimes in the evening the common snake climbs onto a bush to bask in the last pre-evening rays of the sun.
In cold areas, it spends most of the year (8-8.5 months) in a state of torpor, hiding in a hole, a hollow tree, a hole on the river bank or near a dam. Often in such a frost-protected place it gathers a large number of these snakes. The common grass snake has a lot natural enemies. So, it is hunted by badgers, hedgehogs, birds of prey and herons.
Already ordinary - non-venomous snake, therefore only protective coloring protects it from enemies.
It defends itself from an immediate threat in the same way as a poisonous snake: it raises the front part of its body, while its mouth is closed, and then swells and hisses.
If this does not help, he tries to scare off the enemy with secretions of odorous glands located at the base of the tail. If this does not give the desired result, then he pretends to be dead.
REPRODUCTION
At the end of April - beginning of May, immediately after leaving the winter shelter, the mating season begins for snakes.
Males bob their heads up and down and rub their chins on the female's back.
In June or July, females lay up to 30 white, round eggs in one batch. In cold areas they lay eggs in warm place, for example, in a pile of compost, manure, hay or leaves.
In other regions, females bury their eggs in soft soil or lay them in a hollow, which they further expand and adapt to their needs. Sometimes several females use one nest at the same time.
Since eggs can die from drying out, snakes lay them in damp shelters, which, however, retain heat well. In a warm place in good weather, the cones hatch after five weeks, otherwise the incubation period can last up to 10 weeks.
The length of the fish is about 16 cm. Immediately after hatching, they can hunt on their own.
SNACK WATCHING
People often confuse a snake with a viper. Both of these snakes are similar in appearance, however, they can be recognized by the clearly visible light spots (usually yellow and orange) that are located on the sides of the head. These spots are shaped like crescents.
In addition, there are already black spots on the body. The common viper has no patterns or light spots, its pupils have the shape of a narrow slit, and a dark zigzag stripe is clearly visible on its back. Common grass snakes are quite common and can be observed from May to September. During the period from October to April, common snakes mostly hide in safe cover. They can most easily be found in wetlands or near bodies of water.
- In Central and Southern Europe The common one is the most common snake.
- The common snake is one of the few snakes whose range on the Scandinavian Peninsula reaches almost to the Arctic Circle.
- One day, in a clearing under an old door, over 1,200 snake eggs were found, arranged in several layers.
- Over large areas of its range, the coloration of the common grass snake is surprisingly variable.
Often there are even individuals of dark gray or black color.
- People observed this snake swimming in the Bay of Biscay at a distance of 40 km
from the shore. Obviously, salty water does not harm these snakes at all.
HOW AN ORDINARY EATS PREY
The common snake catches prey after a quick attack and swallows it whole.
Its jaw is attached to the skull using movable ligaments. It grabs the prey with its jaws and then pushes it inside. Slippery small animals, such as frogs, are easy to swallow, but to swallow small mammal, he has to secrete a lot of saliva, which envelops the animal’s body and makes it slippery. It sometimes takes the snake several hours to swallow large prey.
Head: Only subspecies N does not have two yellowish spots on the sides of the head.
n.astreptophora. The eyes are black with a round pupil.
Pattern: Black spots are visible on brown or olive green skin.
— Habitat of the common grass snake
WHERE DOES IT LIVE?
The common grass snake is found from the Iberian Peninsula and southern England east across Europe and Central Asia to Mongolia, and in the south to the northeastern coast of Africa.
An ordinary one (snake). Video (00:00:41)
Details about the snake (photo, description). The dog was the first to find the snake, but didn’t eat it, and just then I arrived in time with a camera. I was really dissatisfied with such attention, but I posed...
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Ordinary in HD quality. Video (00:01:03)
Externally, common snakes are usually easily distinguished from other snakes by their “yellow ears” - pronounced markings on the head, usually yellow, but sometimes white and orange.
In rare cases, markings may be faint or absent. Females are larger than males, sometimes reaching up to 1.5 meters, but most often - no more than a meter. It feeds mainly on live frogs, rodents and, less commonly, fish. The enemies of snakes are storks, birds of prey and some mammals.
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On a lake 45 km from Grodno, 08/19/2015
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Caught on the river
COMMON SNACK, DESCRIPTION, IS THE SNACK DANGEROUS, WHAT DOES IT EAT, HABITAT, PHOTO, VIDEO, CONTENT
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It hisses, so loudly. Already ordinary (lat.
Natrix natrix) is the most common species of real snakes in Russia, non-venomous snakes from the colubrid family.
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The snake feasts on fish.
Feeding a wild snake :)
I HAVE APPEARED ALREADY ORDINARY! Video (00:01:01)
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Already ordinary
The common snake (lat. Natrix natrix) is the most common species of real snake in Russia, non-venomous snakes from the colubrid family.
If the color is common snake The person you meet will be typical, you will recognize him immediately.
Typicality is determined by the dark brown, dark gray or black color of the upper side of the body without any pattern, but with bright yellow or orange spots, sort of “stop lights”, located on the sides of the head. Usually the spots are oval in shape; very rarely there are snakes in which the spots are very weakly expressed or absent altogether. The ventral side of the body in all common grass snakes, regardless of the color of the upper body, is dirty white or gray with dark spots forming an indefinite pattern.
Females are larger than males, sometimes reaching up to 1.5 meters, but most often the size is no more than a meter.
Already inhabits North Africa, Europe, with the exception of the most northern parts, and Asia east to Central Mongolia.
The habitats are very diverse, but certainly quite wet - near reservoirs and calm rivers, swamps, in damp forests, but sometimes even found in the open steppe and mountains. They often live in vegetable gardens, orchards, and barnyards and sometimes crawl into outbuildings. In spring and also in autumn, when the soil retains a lot of moisture, snakes can move far from water.
Snakes swim well, raising their heads above the surface of the water and leaving characteristic ripples behind them, so they can be easily seen while moving through the water. They can also stay under water for several tens of minutes.
Common snakes are very active, agile snakes, they crawl quickly and can climb trees.
Snakes feed mainly on frogs, newts, small fish, lizards, mice and voles, small birds and large insects.
The snakes chase their prey and, having overtaken them, grab them with their mouths in order to immediately begin to swallow them alive, thrusting the prey into the open mouth by alternately retracting the right and left halves of the lower jaw, armed with curved back sharp teeth, which can no longer chew food. If at this moment an enemy attacks him, then he has to regurgitate the prey and save himself.
At the same time, prey that has been inside the snake (for example, a frog) often remains alive.
Snakes have many enemies: they are attacked by snake-eagle eagles, kites, less often - storks, and among animals - foxes, badgers, raccoon dogs, minks, martens. In addition, a clutch of eggs and young eggs are often eaten by rats.
When defending itself, it gets into a defensive position, hisses, and even tries to bite, but it does this only when it is impossible to escape. When captured, he squirms, but the only weapon he uses is the terribly smelly excrement that he sprays on his enemy.
But they are persistent by nature, and anyone who has had to fall under such a “shower” will remember the unpleasant sensation for a long time, although the liquid no longer causes irritation on the skin and only affects the sense of smell.
The caught snake defends itself in two ways: active (throws out a portion of stinking liquid from the cloaca) and passive (falls into a state of imaginary death, relaxing the body and sticking out the tongue from the wide-open mouth).
In places where snakes and other snakes permanently live, you can often find their “shirts” and crawling out. They are very thin and almost transparent.
Crawlings are the skin that has fallen behind the body, or rather the cuticle, which is shed by snakes several times a year, but only during active work, approximately from April to September. In winter, snakes and snakes in general, while in shelters, do not shed.
It is interesting that during molting, a transparent film comes off simultaneously with the cuticle and from the eyes, so before molting, for several days, snakes’ eyes look cloudy, as if they were wearing protective smoky glasses. Before molting, the whole body loses its natural color, it becomes faded and dull, but a molted snake is always very impressive, all its patterns, strokes, colors and their shades are visible.
The eyes become light, transparent with clearly visible pupils. Snakes' eyes are always open, they do not have blinking eyelids, and this feature has given rise to fables about the hypnotic abilities of snakes, about the miraculous power of a snake's gaze.
Usually the skin comes off the snake’s body like a stocking, but during abnormal molting it comes off from the skin in parts or shreds. At the same time, the snake crawls a lot, rubs against stones, tree bark and other rough surfaces in order to quickly free itself from the remnants of the cuticle that bother it.
Snakes spend the winter, like all reptiles, in shelters. After hibernation, it is time for them to reproduce; the mating period is April-May.
At this time, snakes gather in groups, form balls of intertwined bodies of males and females in different proportions, but more often the number of males is several times greater than the number of females.
Female snakes begin laying eggs in July-August, in humid and warm places.
The hiss of a snake
Heaps of humus, old straw, and fallen leaves are ideal for this. Rotten stumps, damp moss, and mouse holes will also work. At one time, the female lays up to 6 to 30 eggs.
Snake eggs have an elongated, oval shape, are covered with a white, leathery, opaque shell, and are elastic to the touch.
The average egg length is 25-30, and the width is 18-20 mm. One female lays 10-30 eggs during the summer season, usually once, less often twice. Newly laid eggs are sticky and, during the laying process, their shells stick together, forming chains or shapeless lumps.
Egg development lasts about 2 months, and when cold weather up to 90 days. After hatching from eggs, the constricted ones have a body length with a tail of 130-1 50 mm.
He has earned the title of a good-natured animal, since he almost never uses his teeth in a case against a person; in addition, he gets along well, both in freedom and in captivity, with other animals.
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Snakes are slender, non-venomous snakes. Their dorsal scales have pronounced keels. The pupil is round. The head is protected by a small number of large smooth scutes.
The ventral side is usually spotted.
All snakes “love” water - they swim and dive perfectly.
The ordinary one is the most major representative a kind of snake. Its record length (including tail) is 205 cm, but usually adult specimens do not reach a meter in size. The tail is relatively long, occupying a fifth and sometimes a third of the total length.
The most common color of the grass snake for us is black with a pair of large yellow spots at the back of the head. However, other color variations are also common, and in some habitats of the species there are many more of them than in others. The upperparts may be gray in various shades, sometimes with dark, sometimes staggered spots or narrow transverse stripes.
Dark spots may form a fine mesh pattern. There are forms of snakes with longitudinal light stripes. The spots at the back of the head can be of different shades yellow color, as well as white, orange-red or pink. Sometimes they are absent altogether. The upper labial scutes are white, separated by black stripes.
The ventral side of the body is grayish-white with gray-blue or black spots. Among common snakes, complete melanists - completely black individuals - are occasionally found. There are also known cases of the appearance of real grayish-white-pink albinos with red eyes.
Snakes' eyes are quite large.
The differences between males and females are weakly expressed. Males are slightly smaller than females and have a longer tail.
Range of the common grass snake
In the common grass snake huge range- almost all of Europe, North Africa and much of Asia (including areas of Northern Mongolia and Northern China).
In Russia, it is found throughout the European part, reaching the south of the Republics of Karelia and Komi.
Why do snakes hiss?
In the east of the country it spreads to Lake Baikal.
The common grass snake is found in a wide variety of, but mostly wet, places. There are many snakes in the floodplains of rivers, along the banks of lakes and ponds, in swamps, and in reed thickets. However, they can be found both in the steppe and in the mountains at altitudes up to 2500 meters.
This snake is not afraid of human proximity, often appears on cultivated lands, and even crawls into buildings. Sometimes it settles in the basements of houses, in heaps of garbage, etc.
In some habitats, snakes are very numerous. At the same time, in the north of the range, in Russia, it is very rare view; here only a few individuals can be found, and the local population, usually very familiar with the surrounding fauna, knows nothing about it.
Snakes crawl very quickly and deftly, easily climb trees, often enter the water and swim well, dive and can stay under water for a long time (up to half an hour).
Once a swimming snake was spotted in the open sea at a distance of 25 miles from the coast.
Snakes do not have special holes or shelters - at night they hide under the roots of trees, in piles of leaves and branches, under stones.
They often crawl into hay and into cracks in buildings. For the winter, they take refuge in deeper and more reliable places - in rodent burrows, pits, and also in human buildings. It happened that severe frosts drove snakes wintering there out of the basements of houses and they appeared in the rooms, and sometimes even crawled into the bed.
Snakes often spend the winter alone or in groups of several individuals. But they often have mass wintering areas, to which animals flock in large numbers.
They can spend the winter there together with snakes. common vipers and copperheads. Sometimes real snake processions are observed, when along paths invisible to us, but familiar to the snakes, they crawl to their wintering places one after another in a certain direction (perhaps the scent trail left by their fellow pioneers helps them find their way). The common snake is a very peaceful snake. When meeting a person, he always tries to slip away unnoticed.
If this fails, it can defend itself, trying to scare off the enemy. Like a cobra, it raises the front part of its body, while its neck becomes flat. It hisses and lunges towards danger, sometimes even with its mouth open. However, it bites extremely rarely, even if you pick it up.
The bite of its small teeth, although sensitive, is not strong or painful. Usually he tries to free himself with vigorous movements of the whole body and releases a foul-smelling liquid from the glands located near the cloaca. It also emptys the intestines by regurgitating recently eaten food and throwing out excrement.
Perhaps he does this not so much as a defense, but because of stress. If this does not help, he uses a very characteristic tactic - pretending to be dead. All his muscles relax, he hangs like a rope, his mouth is lifelessly open, his tongue falls out of it, and in some cases even saliva with blood drips.
He can pretend to be dead not only in his hands, but also on the ground, if the pursuer does not give him the opportunity to hide. Often at the same time, as if in convulsions, he turns his abdominal side up.
What do common snakes eat?
Snakes are active at dusk and during the day.
It would seem that with such a wide range of habitats and activity times, and even being so dexterous, snakes could catch a wide variety of prey.
But, unlike boas, they prefer almost exclusively amphibians, mainly frogs, as well as newts, toads, and tadpoles. Much less often they eat insects, fish, and lizards; very rarely - birds and mammals. Having destroyed a bird's nest, it can feast on chicks or eggs, but these are exceptional cases (as are cases of swallowing vipers when these snakes are kept together in a terrarium).
The dependence of snakes on frogs is strong, and the reason for the disappearance of these snakes in a number of places was a sharp decrease in the number of frogs.
Snakes do not lie in wait for their prey, but actively search for it. Having noticed the frog, he begins to touch and does not sing and carefully creep up to it (if one can say so about an animal completely devoid of limbs).
When he manages to crawl close enough to the potential victim without disturbing the potential victim, he makes a sharp lunge and grabs the frog.
It holds slippery prey with its small sharp teeth. If a cautious frog notices the danger in time and dives into the water, it will no longer pursue it, but will slowly begin to look out for a new victim. On land, when he sees a frog, he can chase it.
The frog, apparently, is experiencing severe stress at this moment - it “runs away” not with long jumps, which would give it a chance of salvation, but with short and rare jumps. At the same time, she makes a strange sound, completely different from the croaking we are used to, reminiscent of a plaintive bleat.
It is not at all difficult for a snake to catch such prey.
The captured victim immediately begins to swallow alive.
Frogs have no claws, no teeth, no sharp spines that are dangerous for a predator, so they don’t risk anything. His mouth opens incredibly wide, and he doesn’t care which end he eats the victim from - he swallows it from the place where he grabbed it. After all, as soon as you loosen your grip, the frightened, but still living and mobile prey will slip away.
The left and right halves of the jaws of the snake, like most snakes, are movably connected to each other and “work” like the blades of a snowblower, alternately intercepting the body of the victim and gradually pushing it into the mouth.
The unfortunate frog beats and croaks. Swallowing large prey can take a long time, sometimes several hours. It swallows small frogs quickly, practically without damaging them. If you catch a snake that has just eaten, it will regurgitate its prey. And sometimes it turns out that recently “eaten” frogs remain alive and subsequently return to normal - being inside the snake does not reduce their viability.
However, not all types of prey are completely defenseless against the snake.
Toads sometimes manage to protect themselves using characteristic defensive techniques. Poisonous secrets skin glands of some amphibians - fire salamander, midwife toads are dangerous for snakes.
There have been cases when snakes that swallowed salamanders died from poisoning.
Common snakes have individual differences in tastes: some, in addition to frogs, willingly eat, for example, toads, others never touch them.
Some individuals in the terrarium get used to eating raw meat.
Snakes are voracious: they can swallow four to five frogs at a time. But they can also go hungry for a long time. There is a known case when a large female lived without food for 14 months, maintaining mobility; she only drank water.
Ordinary snakes look at each other rather indifferently.
No forms aggressive behavior in relation to their relatives they do not. This is obviously due to the formation of large concentrations of grass snakes in different situations- during the winter, in the most suitable places for recreation or hunting, during breeding.
Breeding snakes
The main mating season is spring, but sometimes autumn mating is also observed.
In general, snakes appear quite early after wintering. There is still snow everywhere in the forest, and somewhere on the edge, in clearings, you can find someone curled up in a tight ball, basking in the rays. spring sun snake
In such warm, wind-protected areas in the spring, males and females meet to procreate. In the most favorable places in good weather You can meet several couples at the same time. Sometimes a female attracts several males at once - up to 20 applicants have been observed courting a single female. In this case, a group of snakes is formed, which is sometimes called a “mating ball”.
At the same time, the rivals do not fight each other, much less bite. They only seek to prevent each other from taking possession of the female.
Courtship behavior in common grass snakes is simple. The male, approaching the female, periodically nods his head, then usually crawls onto her or presses tightly to her side, wrapping his tail around her tail. The male snake does not hold his partner with his jaws, as some other snakes do.
During mating, snakes lose their usual vigilance, and you can get very close to them.
Common snakes reproduce by laying eggs that have different shape- either oblong, elongated, or more rounded, and sometimes pear-shaped. The length of the egg is from 2 to 4 centimeters, the diameter is 1-2 centimeters. The eggs are covered with a white leathery film, which is moist and sticky immediately after laying. This shell consists of microscopic fibers of various structures, which are impregnated with sticky protein.
Thanks to this, the eggs stick together and stick to surrounding objects. After drying, the shell becomes denser and it is quite difficult to separate the eggs or remove them from the clutch. Such a strong, non-crumbling masonry ensures better preservation of eggs and protects them from loss of moisture.
The clutch size depends primarily on the age of the female.
Young snakes lay 8-15 eggs, older ones - about 30. The record clutch consisted of 105 eggs.
For successful incubation of eggs, the female chooses a moist, warm place, protected from the sun, most often a pile of loose substrate - peat, foliage, sawdust, etc. There, easily pushing apart, for example, foliage with her body, she builds a chamber and lays eggs in it in a compact heap. If an object lying on the ground (for example, a rotten tree trunk) is selected for this purpose, the eggs are laid in an elongated layer.
Places with the most favorable conditions Many females are attracted to lay eggs, and then mass clutches occur, which are widely known specifically among common grass snakes.
Up to three thousand eggs were found in them, laid by many females.
A “public” incubator can be located in one place for several years. Sometimes mass clutches are found near human habitation. Once such masonry was made in the cracks stone wall old house. And when hatching began, the residents were subjected to a real invasion of newborn snakes. Frightened people killed more than 1,200 people.
Depending on the environmental temperature, the incubation period lasts one to two months.
When ready to hatch, the chick has developed a special egg tooth, with which it makes several cuts in the shell of the egg and opens the exit to the outside. When it first sees the light, the baby snake carefully pokes its head out and, at the slightest danger, hides back into the egg. Only after making sure that nothing threatens him does he slip out of the shell.
The length of newborns is 14-22 centimeters; in color they practically do not differ from adult individuals.
In nature, they immediately begin to feed on baby frogs, as well as earthworms and insects. They become sexually mature in the third or fourth year of life.
The life of each common grass snake is associated with a certain space - an individual area in which it spends the main part of its active season from year to year. Such an area has an area of several hectares, and there are shelters, hunting and resting places well known to the snake. The individual territories of individual individuals overlap widely, since the snakes do not defend their possessions in any way.
They may leave their areas for wintering shelters, but return back in the spring. Female grass snakes also migrate to egg-laying sites.
Enemies of common snakes
No effective active ways This snake has no protection from enemies - it can either run away or scare off its pursuer. Therefore, many different animals include grass snakes in their menu.
Dinner eggs are often attacked by ants. Newborns even become victims of predatory insects (for example, ground beetles). Snakes swimming in the water are attacked large fish: There is a known case when a rainbow trout 37 centimeters long was caught while eating a 62-centimeter snake.
Common snakes and their favorite food - toads and frogs - sometimes switch roles. During mass appearance Large toads catch the light and lake frogs regularly feast on them. In rare cases, constrictors become victims large lizards, sometimes snakes of other species prey on snakes.
About 40 species of birds include them in their diet. There are no fewer enemies among mammals; This includes the hedgehog - the threat of all snakes, and small rodents that willingly feed on small bites; there are also cases of cannibalism.
The snake's serious enemy is man. The snake is a very noticeable snake that also lives close to humans. Since the fear of snakes is in people’s blood, and many do not know how to distinguish between dangerous and harmless snakes, snakes are also destroyed “just in case.”
Meanwhile, it is quite simple to distinguish an ordinary grass snake from the only poisonous viper snake that lives together with it in most regions of Russia. Bright, usually yellow, spots in the back of the head, large scutes on it and a long slender body clearly distinguish the snake from the massive viper, whose head is covered with small scales and scutes and never has such spots.
Snakes are also disappearing due to a decrease in the number of frogs, as well as due to the drying out of their wet habitats. In many places in Europe, this snake is among the species under threat of complete extinction.
A peace-loving person gets along well with people and in the house.
In the terrarium, he quickly gets used to the owner and even takes food from his hands. It is much less demanding on living conditions than most other reptiles. Easily reproduces in captivity. In the 19th century in the Kazan province, snakes were kept as pets in some huts.
Already- This is a fairly large non-venomous snake. The average length of this reptile is from 80 to 90 centimeters, but larger specimens of one and a half meters in length can also be found. The snake's body is unevenly colored: the upper part of the body is dark (black, brown or dark gray), and the ventral side is almost white.
Snake sounds
It is very easy to distinguish it from other snakes by the yellow or bright orange spots that are located on the sides of its head. He swims very well, quickly bending his body and keeping his head above the surface of the water, and even knows how to dive.
Where live
Snakes live in almost all European countries, with the exception of Great Britain and Scandinavia.
Their favorite places are damp, shady forests and the banks of rivers and lakes, where they hide under piles of stones, under tree roots or in burrows. They can often be seen near human habitation.
What do they eat?
Snakes feed mainly on frogs, toads, lizards, chicks that have fallen from nests, and very rarely on fish.
They hunt only during daylight hours, and at night they hide in secluded places. Juveniles mainly eat insects. The snake swallows its prey whole. If she settles near a human dwelling, she successfully catches mice.
Therefore, in some countries, these snakes are tamed, and they, just as well as cats, help people get rid of rodents in their homes.
How do they reproduce?
At the end of summer, female grass snakes lay from one to three dozen eggs, which are covered with a soft, leathery shell. For the nest, the female chooses a secluded place damp place, and after one and a half to two months, small snakes emerge from the eggs. They immediately crawl out of the nest and begin to live an independent life.
How do they winter
With the onset of cold weather, snakes hide in places where frost cannot penetrate.
These can be deep holes that other animals have dug, or voids under large stones and roots. Very often, several snakes spend the winter in one such secluded place. With the onset of warmth, they wake up from hibernation, become active and spread out.
Snakes are not dangerous at all, which is why many people keep them as pets.
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