Lots of snakes6/23/2023 ![]() In particular, the milk snake regularly enters burrows and will consume young mice and rats right in the nests. Species such as the milk snake and black rat snake consume great numbers of rodents, and their presence around barns is of great benefit to farmers. Depending on size and species, they may feed on invertebrates such as slugs, worms and insects, or on fish, amphibians, snakes, birds, bird eggs and small mammals. Common in many types of habitat, they affect the "balance of nature" as both predators and prey. Snakes are important components of natural ecosystems. ![]() When the air temperature is too hot, they seek shelter in small mammal burrows, under rocks and occasionally in cool cellars. Snakes can warm themselves by basking in the sun, lying under rocks or boards that are in the sun, or by lying on rocks and pavement that hold the heat after dark. During the active season they are rarely cold and are surprisingly good at regulating their temperatures through behavior. "Cold-blooded"Īlthough it is said that snakes are "cold-blooded," it is more accurate to say that they are unable to regulate their body temperatures by generating heat. Many snakes utilize these burrows for food, shelter and egg laying sites, but most species don't dig holes. Although some snakes do burrow, most "snake holes" are produced by chipmunks, mice, shrews and other small mammals. ![]() Within those habitats, snakes may travel along the ground, swim, climb trees and bushes, and venture below ground. Our native snakes occupy a wide range of habitats, including: fields, forests, wetlands, ponds, lakes, streams, rocky hillsides, farmland, vacant lots and residential neighborhoods. Most snakes mature at one or two years of age, and individuals may live up to twenty years in the wild. Our snakes do not take any responsibility for the care and protection of their young. Whether deposited as eggs or dropped as fully formed miniature adults, snakes are on their own from the start. Most snakes hatch or are born in late summer. Egg-layers usually deposit their clutches (groups of eggs) in dirt, beneath stones or logs, or in piles of decaying wood or vegetation during late spring or early summer. They generally mate in the spring, shortly after leaving whatever hollow, burrow or rock crevice has sheltered them through winter hibernation. Reproductionĭepending on the species, snakes may be egg-layers or give birth to live young. You have a better chance of being struck by lightning. The important thing to remember is that unless you attempt to harm or capture a snake, it is almost impossible to get bitten. Our nonvenomous snakes all possess short, thin, very sharp teeth that leave clean, shallow wounds (rarely requiring even a bandage), and which - unlike the bites of mammals - carry no threat of disease. In self defense, some will indeed bite, but except in the case of our two extremely rare, venomous species, the resulting wounds are superficial. Other species attempt to frighten or intimidate potential enemies through bluff: flattening their heads, puffing up their bodies, rattling their tails or hissing. Even then, the defensive maneuvers of several species are nothing more offensive than releasing foul-smelling anal secretions. None of them are aggressive, although - like most animals - they will defend themselves if threatened, injured or captured. Most of them, even as adults, are less than three feet long, and several are generally less than a foot in length. In Massachusetts we have fourteen species of native snakes.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |