Traditionally, snakes are animals towards which man has shown a profound aversion. This crawling animal arouses man’s fear and repugnance, and seems to represent to him a menace against which he would find it difficult to protect himself. The cold, unwavering glance of the snake’s immobile eyes does not inspire affection. And yet one cannot say that snakes are ugly. If man did not have such a deep-seated prejudice against snakes, he would admire their elegance, their splendid and varied colours, and their marvelous motion. Another thing which should be kept in mind is that many snakes are not poisonous or dangerous but that, on the contrary, they are very useful to farmers and are even protected in some countries.
Members of the Colubrine family, the largest family of snakes, are found nearly everywhere in the world. Most of them are not poisonous. They eat rodents, especially rats and mice. Some members of this family are even called rat snakes. There are five kinds of rat snakes found in the United States. The bull snake, or gopher snake as it is called on the Pacific Coast, is about six feet long and is yellowish-brown in colour with symmetrical brown spots. When surprised, this snake coils, hisses and even rattles its tail. If a farmer in mid-western United States is having his crops eaten by rodents, he tries to catch bull snakes and put them in his fields. After the bull snake is let loose, it is not long before the farmer’s crops no longer suffer from the rodents. The bull snake follows its prey down into the depths of their burrows, crushes them in its powerful coils and eats them. Above ground it also kills its prey by constriction.
Other snakes which aid in the control of rodents are the corn snakes, yellowish- brown with red spots, the pilot black snakes and the coachwhip snakes. The coach whip snakes were given that name because theylook like whips used by coachmen.
In India, many folk tales are told about the Indian rat snake. It sometimes grows to eight feet in length and is supposed to be a welcome visitor in houses infested with rats and mice. The rat snakes of Madagascar are of great help to the sugar plantation owners because the snakes keep the rodent population under control. Otherwise the rodents would do great damage to the sugar cane crops on that island. The indigo snake, handsomer and more amiable in character than the bull snake, is also entitled to the farmer’s gratitude. If man could get used to these inoffensive creatures and overcome his repulsion, be would do justice to allies that make few demands on him.
The king snakes will attack and eat other snakes, including the poisonous rattlesnakes. The king snake almost always comes out the victor in these combats, especially if the rattlesnake is smaller. The king snake seems immune to the rattlesnake’s venom. The king snake kills its adversary by strangling it in its coils, and then eats it, starting with the victim’s head. In addition to snakes, the king snake will eat rats, small animals and birds. There are about fifteen species of king snakes found in North America.
Rainforest Snakes Pictures
