Scientists Discover the Snake Clitoris
An international team of researchers, led by the University of Adelaide has provided the first anatomical description of the female snake clitoris, in a first-of-its-kind…
Snake News
North America’s Rarest Snake Found Dead
The snake was recently spotted for the first time in four years. After a four-year absence, the rarest snake in North America, the Tantilla oolitica…
Striking New Species of Snake Discovered in Paraguay – Previously Unknown to Science
A magnificent non-venomous snake, previously unknown to science, was discovered in Paraguay and described by researchers from the Paraguayan NGO Para La Tierra in collaboration…
How Boas Save Themselves From Suffocating When Squeezing Their Prey to Death
Boa constrictors breathe with different sections of rib cage when constricting prey and digesting dinner. The later stages of pregnancy can make life difficult as…
Common Origin: Venoms in Snakes and Salivary Protein in Mammals Evolved From the Same Ancestral Gene
A new study has found that a class of toxins found in snake and mammalian venom evolved from the same ancestral gene. A new study…
Primates vs Cobras: How Our Last Common Ancestor Built Venom Resistance After Long Evolutionary Arms Race
The last common ancestor of chimps, gorillas, and humans developed an increased resistance toward cobra venom, according to University of Queensland-led research. Scientists used animal-free…
A Fossil of a Bizarre Snake-Like Lizard Has Generated Controversy Beyond Its Identity
More than 120 million years ago in what is now modern Brazil, an ancient waterway was filled with all manner of strange creatures. These included…
Snakes Diversified Explosively After the Dinosaurs Were Wiped Out 66 Million Years Ago
Sudden burst of evolution 66 million years ago expanded snake diets and put vertebrates on the menu. The remarkable diversification of mammals and birds after…
Mating Season Mishaps? Unprovoked Attacks by Venomous Olive Sea Snakes on Scuba Divers
Attacks by venomous Olive sea snakes on scuba divers may be misdirected courtship behaviors, according to a study published in Scientific Reports. Scuba divers frequently…
Snakes Diversified Explosively After Mass Extinction Where Dinosaurs Were Wiped Out
Modern snakes evolved from ancestors that lived side by side with the dinosaurs and that likely fed mainly on insects and lizards. Then a miles-wide…
All Living Snakes Evolved From a Few Survivors of Asteroid That Killed the Dinosaurs
Research from the Milner Center for Evolution suggests modern snakes evolved from a handful of ancestors that survived the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs. A…
Rattlesnake Rattles Use Acoustic Trick To Fool Human Ears
Rattlesnakes increase their rattling rate as potential threats approach, and this abrupt switch to a high-frequency mode makes listeners, including humans, think they’re closer than…
First Genetic Sequencing of Brazilian Pit Viper Completed – Reveals Origin of Toxins in Its Venom
In an article published in PNAS, researchers affiliated with Butantan Institute describe the genome of Bothrops jararaca and suggest the origin of genes responsible for…
“Dental Origami” – How Snakes Got Their Fangs
‘Dental origami’ exploited by multiple species. Ever wondered how deadly snakes evolved their fangs? The answer lies in particular microscopic features of their teeth, research…
Smelling in Stereo: The Real Reason Snakes Have Flicking, Forked Tongues
As dinosaurs lumbered through the humid cycad forests of ancient South America 180 million years ago, primeval lizards scurried, unnoticed, beneath their feet. Perhaps to…
Snake Venom Complexity Is Driven by Prey Diet
Diversity in diet plays a role in the complexity of venom in pit vipers such as rattlesnakes, copperheads and cottonmouths. But new collaborative research by…
Snake Scale Microstructures Reveal Secrets of Sidewinding and Slithering
The mesmerizing flow of a sidewinder moving obliquely across desert sands has captivated biologists for centuries and has been variously studied over the years, but…
Physics of Snakeskin Sheds Light on Specialized Sidewinding Locomotion of Sidewinder Snakes
Microscopic look reveals differences in the surfaces of snakes’ bellies. Most snakes get from A to B by bending their bodies into S-shapes and slithering…
