Snakes House

Behavior

All three species of file snakes are aquatic and appear to be nocturnal. Nighttime activity seems related largely to foraging, and snakes have been observed patrolling shallow tidal pools, where fish tend to become concentrated. During daylight hours these snakes are very reclusive, hiding among tangled mangrove roots, river edges, or in holes and burrows. In captivity, these snakes bury themselves in mud. Java file snakes have been observed to burrow in riverbanks beneath the roots of trees, where they are sometimes found in large aggregations. Java file snakes are occasionally seen swimming, mostly because of the periodic need to breathe air at the water’s surface. Although they are adept swimmers, file snakes often move by crawling sluggishly over muddy substrates at the bottom of streams or swamps. Younger, smaller snakes are seldom seen, and very little is known about their ecology.

Although movements of file snakes are generally described as sluggish, data on the Arafura file snakes indicate these snakes sometimes make extensive daily excursions. Occasional specimens of the little file snakes have been found on tidal mud flats, and it seems likely that file snakes might occasionally leave water to travel between bodies of water during times of tidal or seasonal fluctuation of water level. In at least some instances, however, file snakes are known to remain within a limited area year after year. Because file snakes have low energy requirements and exist in areas where fishes tend to be concentrated, population densities may be very high and are reported to be at least 100 snakes for every 2 acres (1 hectare) in some Australian billabongs.

Little is known about predation on file snakes. They may be eaten by crocodiles, various birds, and other animals and be captured by humans. It seems likely that the physiological and behavioral adaptations for prolonged submergence are related to avoidance of predation in shallow-water habitats.

Habitat

This medium-sized snakes has adapted to life in salt, brackish and fresh water. Due to small grained scales on the whole body, the snakes feels rough to the touch. They are easily confused with the poisonous sea snakes.

Food

mainly fish.

Reproduction

Ovoviviparous with litters ranging from 2 to 32 neonates (A. javanicus). Clutch size is correlated with body size. Acrochordus granulatus: 4-8 neonates.

Food

The King Cobra eats mice, rats, snakes, lizards, birds, frogs and fish. Like all snakes, they swallow the prey whole, head first. The top and bottom jaws are attached to each other with stretchy ligaments, which let the snakes swallow animals wider that itself. snakes can’t chew their prey; food is digested by very strong acids in the snakes’s stomach. It can go without food for months.

Reproduction

The King Cobra reproduces by laying eggs in nests made of rotting vegetation. It is the only snakes that builds a nest. The baby snakes is about a foot and a half when it is born. They are jet black, with yellow stripes. When they get older, they will become olive brown or gray.

Behavior

King Cobras are diurnal, or active during the daytime. Although they mostly live on land King Cobras are also excellent climbers and will pursue prey into the trees. These cobras are also good swimmers.

Males will fight for a female using a “neck-wrestling” technique. The successful male then courts the female by rubbing her with his head. Both male and female are reported to remain in the vicinity of the nest until hatching. The cobras are protective of their eggs and will be very aggressive towards any human that approaches the nest. When threatened, they stand and hood and produce a hiss sound, which resembles dog’s growl.

Adaptations

King Cobras have short fangs but can strike in a highly accurate downward thrust. To achieve this, the King Cobra can raise one third of its body length as high as 4-5 feet off the ground. Their fangs are hollow tubes through which venom is passed. While it is not the most poisonous of cobras, because of its large size and high venom yield, the King Cobra can inject enough venom to kill an elephant. Despite this, this cobra kills fewer than five humans each year.

King Cobras are good swimmers and excellent climbers. The females build complex nests that probably serve both as protection and temperature regulation for the eggs.

Overview

In general, Emerald Tree Boa’s are amazing animals, although difficult to keep they are well worth the extra effort. It’s amazingly gratifying to look into a cage and see this massive head staring out at you trailed by huge emerald coils and topped with bright white triangles that play on the light. They are truly magnificent animals that deserve nothing but the best as our guests. If you are not ready to spend a significant amount of time and money on the proper husbandry techniques and necessary equipment then an emerald is not for you. Why would you buy a brand new Lamborghini and park it out on the street? The same goes for this snakes. Don’t buy an emerald if you expect to place an adult in a 10 or 15 gallon tank with a screen lid and a spotlight. If you’re looking for something cool to hang around your arm and show of to your friends, get a corn snakes, or a Burmese python, not an emerald. In other words, this snakes is a display animal, it is not in the nature of this snakes to be handled and prodded. In the wild, an emerald is only seized seconds before its skull is pierced by a hawk, falcon, cat, or even monkey. They as a rule are not handle able animals. I know that tons of you out there are getting ready to write me and tell me that I’m wrong, you’re right. The point I’m trying to make is that although there are tons of exceptions, this is an animal that best benefits from being left alone. Treat them like the gems that they are and I guarantee that you won’t be disappointed.

Habitat

wet lowland rain forest (areas that receive over 60 in. rain)

Range

Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Guyana, French Guiana, Surinam, and Brazil

Diet

These snakes have a very slow metabolism. They should be fed one appropriately-sized meal once per week unless medical conditions dictate otherwise. Some adults need to be fed only once per month. An appropriately-sized meal will leave a lump in the snakes that lasts about 24 hours. Overfeeding causes obesity and often constipation. In the wild, the diet of the Green Tree Python consists of reptiles and mammals, with juveniles mainly eating reptiles and adults eating mammals. These snakes do not eat a lot of birds as is commonly believed. In captivity, these snakes are fed a diet of domestic mice and rats. Feeding frozen-thawed is preferred over live because live rodents can harm the snakes. Frozen food should be used within 6 months of freezing.

Appearance

This is a beautiful boa with a strong resemblance to the Green Tree Python. Juveniles are red or orange but their colour changes to green during the first year. It has a row of white markings along the back and large, prominent heat pits

Classification

Kingdom Animalia, Phylum Chordata, Class Reptilia, Order Squamata (lizards and snakes), Suborder Serpentes, Family Boidae (constrictors), Genus Corallus, Species C. caninus.

Description

Bull Snake are the largest snakes in South Dakota and one of the largest species found in the United States. These powerfully built snakes range from 48 to 72 inches (122-173 cm) long with an average length of about five feet (1.5 m) at maturity and a record of almost 8 feet (2.5 m). Their coloring is yellowish tan with about 40 brownish blotches along their bodies. The underside is pale yellow with bold black spots, especially toward the sides. Each scale on a Bull Snake has a small ridge called a keel. These keels make the snakes rougher to the touch than a smooth-scaled snakes such as a green snake. Members of this species sometimes are called pine snakes or gopher snakes. The Lakota call them “sinte wangleglega.”

Natural History

One of the largest and most often seen snakes of Nebraska. Bull Snake may vibrate tail when alarm, which may sound like a rattlesnake, also makes a hissing noise. However, they may from time to time get hit over the head with a hoe for doing too effective a job of acting like a rattlesnake. Bull Snake should not be killed as they are of no danger to humans and eat large numbers of rodents. For all their fierce display if handled gently they quickly become tame.

Bull Snake usually seize prey with their mouth and, if the prey is large, wrap several coils around them, and kill by constriction. Like many snakes they tend to hunt in the morning and evenings except at the hottest times of the summer when they are more active at night.

Because they consume so many rodents these snakes are normally considered beneficial (Collins and Collins considered it the most beneficial snakes in Kansas). However they are also excellent at finding and eating duck eggs and this has put them at odds with game managers in Nebraska. While some control of Bull Snake has been attempted to help duck production, it has been abandoned as ineffective and undesirable.

Feeding

In the wild, these large snakes prey principally upon any manner of rodent that may cross their path. Both juveniles and adults may occasionally eat a lizard or a ground-nesting bird as well. Captives eat mice and rats, and hatchlings are large enough when they emerge from the egg to eat a good-sized mouse.

Usually quiet, Bull Snake become active when hungry. A hatchling can eat at least one mouse a week; an adult will eat a rat or several mice every week to 10 days. Let your snakes’s activity patterns tell you when it’s hungry.

As a rule of thumb, the largest meal you feed your snakes should not greatly exceed the diameter of your snakes’s head. Although Bull Snake can swallow comparatively large prey items, adverse temperature fluctuations or fright are more apt to cause them to regurgitate a large meal than a small one.

Although many hobbyists consider it macho to feed a snakes live food, the bite of a live rodent can injure or kill your snakes, and it is inhumane to traumatize the rodent. We suggest that only pre-killed prey be offered.

Even tame Bull Snake may bite at feeding time when stimulated by the scent of a rodent. Approach the snakes carefully.

range

Southern Alberta to southern and central Wisconsin and western Indiana, south through central and western Texas to northeastern Mexico.

Breeding and Propagation

The Bull Snake’s mating season is in the spring. The females lay a clutch of between three and twenty eggs in a shallow hole, which they dig themselves. The off-white colored eggs will hatch after between 64 and 80 days of incubation. The hatchlings, which are on their own as soon as they’re born, average between one and one and a half feet in length.

Anatomy

Bull Snake are up to about 5 feet (1.5 m) long. They range from yellow-brown to brown to cream-colored, with black and brown markings; the belly is light brown. This snakes has a small head and a large nose shield, which it uses to dig. Like all snakes, Bull Snake are cold-blooded; they are the same temperature as the environment. The Bull Snake smells using its tongue. This snakes has teeth and can bite (but it is not venomous).

Distribution

Bull Snake occur in the western, southern and southeastern United States. They are very common throughout Texas except for the extreme east and extreme western Trans-Pecos.

Description

The Boa Constrictor is a reptile, which can be found on the continent of South America. It lives in the rain forest biome. The boa has many different color patterns of yellow, brown, green, and black. The boa has a long skinny figure. It can grow to about 3-4 meters and weighs about 60 kilograms. It has scales that feel like a leather basketball and it doesn’t move very fast. The boa feeds upon little rodents. At the zoo it gets fed two medium size rats once a week. The boa kills its prey by coiling its body around the victim and then suffocating it. Then it swallows it whole. The Boa Constrictor lives to 25 years or more in captivity, but in the wild it lives fewer years. It also bears live young. The boa usually lives alone, not in groups.

Status

The Boa Constrictor is listed on CITES Appendix II, except for B.c.occidentalis, which is list on Appendix I. In many parts of tropical America, Boa Constrictors are valued as destroyers of rodents. In some areas, these snakes have been “domesticated” for this reason. Many are bred or captured for the pet trade. Thousands of dollars are made importing them to the United States.

Anatomy

Like all snakes, Boa Constrictors are cold-blooded; they are the same temperature as the environment. They continue to grow all their lives, getting bigger and bigger each year. Adult Boa Constrictors average about 6 to 10 feet (1.8-3 m) long and weigh over 60 pounds (27 kg). The largest Boa Constrictor ever found was 18.5 feet (5.5 m) long. Boa Constrictors have coloration that camouflages them; they have varying paterns of cream, brown, tan, gray, and black with ovals and diamonds. The scaly skin glistens but is dry is to the touch. It has no fangs. The forked tongue senses odors. There are heat sensors under the upper lip; these help the snakes locate warm-blooded prey, like mammals and birds.

Breeding

The Boa Constrictor has appendages resembling claws on each side of its vent (genital opening). They are the remnants, or vestiges, of the hind limbs inherited form the boa\s lizard-like ancestors. The appendages are generally larger in males than females and are thought to be used by the male to stimulate the female to mate.Boa Constrictor After fertilization, the eggs remain in the female’s body, where they develop over several months inside thin membranes. Unlike its close relative, the python, the Boa Constrictor gives birth to live fully formed young. The protective membranes rupture as the young are released. As many as sixty snakes are born at one time, each measuring 17-20 inches.

Diet

Boa Constrictors easily populate areas where there is food such as rodents and songbirds. Boa Constrictors will also feed on lizards, small mongoose, bats, rats, sqirrels, iguanas and other small mammals.

Behaviour

The Boa Constrictor has no poison unlike many other snakes, but when threatened they will hiss and strike their opponent, their bite can be very, very painful. Boa Constrictors use constriction to suffercate their prey. When the prey has been suffocated the Boa eats it whole. It can take several weeks for a Boa to digest its’ food completely.

Boa Constrictors use ‘heat sensitive pits’ on their heads to sense their surroundings because they have bad eyesight.

Description

There are some debates about the maximum size of these snakes. Mehrtens (1987) states that the average adult length for the green Anaconda, E. murinus, is 18 to 20 feet (5.5–6.1 m), with 25 feet (7.6 m) specimens being very rare. He sets a more conservative maximum at 23 feet (7.0 m). Estimates of 35 to 40 feet (11–12 m) (see Giant Anaconda) are based on vague data and should be regarded with caution.In a study of 1,000 specimens captured in Venezuela, the largest was 17 feet (5.2 m) long and weighed 100 pounds (45 kg).

The Wildlife Conservation Society has, since the early 20th century, offered a large cash reward (currently worth US$50,000) for live delivery of any snakes of 30 feet (9.1 m) or more in length. This prize has never been claimed. In any case, measuring a snakes that is stronger than the person is not an easy task. It was found that two scientists independently measuring the same 12-foot (3.7 m) plus snake showed a variation of more than 20% in their results.

Hunting and Diet

Anacondas are carnivores (meat-eaters). They mostly hunt at night (they are nocturnal). Anacondas kill by constricting (squeezing) the prey until it can no longer breathe. Sometimes they drown the prey. Like all snakes, they swallow the prey whole, head first. The Anaconda’s top and bottom jaws are attached to each other with stretchy ligaments, which let the snakes swallow animals wider than itself. snakes don’t chew their food, they digest it with very strong acids in the snakes’s stomach. Anacondas eat pigs, deer, caiman (a type of crocodilian), birds, fish, rodents (like the capybara and agouti), and other animals. After eating a large animal, the Anaconda needs no food for a long time, and rests for weeks. The young (called neonates) can care for themselves soon after birth, including hunting (but are pretty much defenseless against large predators). They eat small rodents (like rats and mice), baby birds, frogs and small fish.

How Big Is an Anaconda?

Anaconda (an uh KAHN duh) is the name of two well-known kinds of constrictors. One kind is the largest snakes in the world. It can grow to be more than 30 feet (9 meters) in length. All adult Anacondas are more than 15 feet (4.6 meters) long. An adult snakes this size can weigh over 220 pounds (100 kilograms).

These giant snakes live near rivers and other bodies of water in tropical South America. Anacondas are not poisonous. They belong to the boa family of snakes and are often called “water boas.” Anacondas prey on turtles, birds, mammals, and small caymans (KAY muhnz)—South American crocodiles.

Like most snakes, Anacondas are shy. They usually defend themselves from enemies by retreating. If cornered, Anacondas will bite. This, along with their great size and weight, can make Anacondas dangerous to people.

Anacondas belong to the family Boidae. The giant Anaconda is Eunectes murinas; the yellow, E. notaeus

Description
The average length is 15-20 feet, but can reach 32 feet. The head is triangular shaped; yet they are not venomous. Coloration is dark brown with light brown areas on the back with a wavy stripe outlined in yellow-gold along each side.

Breeding

Sexual maturity reached in the first 2 - 4 years. Refer to the snakes Sexing care card if sex is unknown. Males breed at 7′+’ and females 9′+. Breeding season in captivity: November - March. Stop all feeding at this time. Animals should have excellent weight and be established before any breeding is attempted. Breeding may be induced by reducing daytime photo periods to 8 - 10 hours and dropping nighttime temps. into the low 70Õsand day time temps. in low 80’s. Introduce the female into the males cage. Misting the animals with water may be beneficial. May lay clutch sizes of 20 - 80+ eggs, maternally incubates. Incubation temperature 88 - 90F(optimal), 70 - 80 days to hatch. Infrequently bred in captivity.

Behaviour
African Rock Python are highly dependent on water sources, and estivate during the hottest and dryest parts of the year, remaining deep in burrows made by other animals. They are opportunistic predators, and will consume almost any animal they come across which they can overpower with constriction. Young African Rock Python eat primarily small rodents, which makes them popular with local farmers for reducing the populations of species harmful to crops, like the cane rat, but adults are capable of taking very large prey, including crocodiles, goats and gazelles, making them a potential danger to livestock. The African Rock Python is noted for its bad temperament, and readiness to bite if harassed. In stark contrast to the Burmese African Rock Python which is typically docile except when food is near.

Reproduction occurs in the spring, and the female can lay as many as 100 eggs at a time. She guards her nest while they incubate for 2-3 months. Hatchlings are between 18-24 inches (45-60 cm) in length, and appear virtually identical to adults, only they are more contrasting in color.

Diet
Wild: hatchlings - small rodents, young mammals/birds • adults - small/young antelopes, warthogs, dogs, monkeys, water fowl, goats & crocodiles

Zoo: rabbits 1/week

Characteristics
This snakes is light brown with darker markings outlined in light gray or cream color. The entire body has an iridescent sheen. It has heat sensing pits in its upper and lower jaws for detecting warm-blooded prey. It is a heavy-bodied African Rock Python and may weigh over 250 pounds. They may occupy animal burrows or enter the water to escape the heat of the day.

Description

The blue indigo snake is the largest and longest non-venomous snakes in North America. The blue indigo snake is a large glossy blue-black snakes reaching lengths of up to 9 feet. It has a solid color with the exception of an occasional orange, pink white or reddish area under the chin, which may extend to the throat and cheeks. It is sometimes confused with the similar black racer or the black pine snakes, but is much stockier.

Historically

the blue indigo snake was found from southern Georgia to the Florida Keys and west to Alabama, but today, it is mostly restricted to Florida and southern Georgia, where it is often found in association with gopher tortoise burrows in well-drained scrub and sandhill habitats. This snakes, though, is not found just in dry areas. It readily moves through a variety of habitats, especially those that border marshes and swamps, in search of prey such as birds, young turtles, frogs, and other snakes, including rattlesnakes. Look for the blue indigo snake along both trails at the Charlotte Harbor Environmental Center - Alligator Creek Site. As with all snakes, admire the indigo from a respectful distance.

Habitat

The blue indigo snake lives in pine - scrub oak woods , pine flatwoods, and forested sandhills and ridges in the northern part of its range . In the southern portions of its range, it can be found around wetland areas such as swamps , streams , and canals. The distribution and habitat preference closely overlap that of the Gopher Tortoise. Tortoise burrows are important retreats for the blue indigo snake. These large, diurnal snakes require from 50 - 100 hectares (123.6 - 247.1 acres ) for their home range.

Ecology

Indigos are found in the lower coastal plain along with the burrowing gopher tortoise. They use the burrows not only for refuge, but also for breeding and reproduction. Breeding season occurs between October and February. A female that occupies a burrow and is ready to be bred will attract numerous males to the burrow. Once bred, the female will use burrows as egg deposition sites. The eggs are laid in clutches of nine eggs per clutch, hatching 90 to 120 days later. After hatching, the young snakes move to low wetland areas and feed on small lizards, frogs and toads. Adult snakes feed on small mammals, birds, and snakes, with a preference for snakes. The blue indigo snake is thought to be the main predator of the eastern diamondback rattlesnake and data has shown the rattlesnake to be a preferred food item. Adult blue indigo snakes will eat smaller juvenile blue indigo snake.

Significance to Humans

blue indigo snakes are highly valued as pets, especially D. c. couperi. Some individuals now are being produced through captive breeding.

Description

Smooth, shiny cylindrical snakes; reddish-brown, pink, or silvery tan, with blunt head and tail. Small spine on tip of tail. Eyes mere black spots beneath ocular scales; more than 1 scale on top of head between large scale covering each eye. No enlarged belly plates. 14 rows of scales around body.

Diet

Texas blind snakes most often eat ant larvae and pupae and termites, but they sometimes eat other insects and spiders. They always eat ant larvae and pupae whole, but they often refuse to eat the heads of termites and sometimes only chew the juices out of the back portion of the termite. Once in a while, a small owl known as a screech owl will swoop down to snatch a texas blind snakes and, keeping it alive, bring it back to its nest. There, the snakes cleans out the nest by eating small invertebrates that might otherwise nibble on the owl.

Habitat

Has been found on canyon slopes and bottoms, including areas with piñon pine, junipers, and various shrubs; usually in damp, loose soil among and under rocks; apparently moves deeper underground when the surface soil becomes dry in summer.

Breeding

Clutch of 2-7 elongate, thin-shelled eggs, 5/8″ (16 mm) long, is laid late June to July. Females tend incubating eggs and may share communal nesting sites in rocky rissures or earthen burrows. Hatchlings are about 2 3/4″ (7 cm) long.