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Pet snakes endure many myths. Here is just a small sampling.
Myth: Snakes are slimy
Fact: A snake’s skin is actually very smooth and dry. It is made of the same thing that makes human finger nails and hair. It is called keratin.
Myth: Snakes lie next to a person to size them up
Fact: Even the largest of snakes would have trouble eating a human. There are a few things wrong with this myth that give it away without even needing to think much about it.
- Snakes, particularly large ones, aren’t known for wasting energy hunting down and killing something they can’t eat.
- A snake doesn’t have the brain capacity to “measure” anything. It knows instinctively if it can or can’t eat something and either strikes or doesn’t
- While there are known and documented instances of people being killed by venomous snakes, and being killed by large constrictors there are no proven instances of people being eaten by snakes. Other animals yes, snakes no.
Even Snopes researched this myth and found it to be fales
Myth: Snakes can hypnotize you with their eyes
Fact: Not in this lifetime they can’t. This myth is probably a result of the snakes unblinking stare. Caused by the fact that they have no eyelids, NOT because they are masters of hypnotic warfare.
Myth: Hoop Snakes exist
Fact: While we might find it amusing to imagine a snake that takes its own tail in its mouth, rolls itself in to a hoop, and wheels around in search of prey it simply isn’t true. There has NEVER been any evidence that a hoop snake exists. It probably comes from the Ouroboros of Greek mythology.
Myth: Venomous snakes have triangular heads
Fact: Some, such as the Western DiamondBack Rattlesnake do, but then so does the Jungle Carpet Python which is harmless. The only way to tell a venomous snake from a non-venomous one is to be familiar with what you are looking at. Triangular heads is NOT an accurate way to tell.
Myth: St. Patrick banished snakes from Ireland
Fact: There is no evidence whatsoever to support this idea. It is true that no snakes are native to the Emerald Isle; likely because snake could survive the frigid temperatures of the surrounding wa. They were unable to migrate from elsewhere.
This was just a small sampling of hundreds of myths related to snakes. With very few exceptions do they ever prove to be true.
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I thought it was really cool that snake’s skin is made out of the same stuff as our nails and hair. I never knew that.
Pretty neat isn’t it.
Just thought you shud probably add another myth, given the current political climate, it shud be somewhere along the lines of: all large contrictors will colonize the united states unless they are culled or banned.
Fact: This is just plain stupidity, the only one that could come close is a Diamond python, maybe a diamond coastal intergrade. Then again surely all our bald eagles and other large birds of prey will just eat them.
i love snakes i believe that the first word i ever said was snakes! they are so smooth and nice