Wednesday, November 01, 2006

Pictures of King Cobra Snake

The King Cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) is the longest of the venomous land snakes, growing up to 18.5 feet (5.7 meters) in length. Because they are slender, however, these snakes usually do not exceed 20 kg (44 lb). The snake's venom is a powerful neurotoxin known to be frequently fatal to humans. The mortality rate in King Cobra bites is 75%. Although called a Cobra it does not belong to the same genus (Naja) as "true" cobras. The King Cobra is peculiar in that it feeds almost exclusively on other snakes, which is reflected in its genus name of Ophiophagus (Snake eater). The King Cobra is known to attack larger snakes, including pythons. In spite of the King Cobra's fearsome reputation, it is generally a shy and reclusive animal, avoiding confrontation with people as much as possible. There are many smaller venomous snakes within this species' range that are responsible for a far greater number of fatal snake bites.

Like cobras, the king cobra lifts around a third of its body off the ground, makes a hood, and hisses loudly when it feels threatened. A fully-grown King Cobra would therefore be able to stare at a standing human directly in the eye, making it a terrifying sight and giving it a near-mythical reputation as a deadly snake.
King Cobra Snake Pictures:




Copperhead Snake Pictures

Description
The copperhead as mentioned previously has a red, copper-colored head, but the rest of its body is shaded differently. The body is pinkish to gray-brown with a dark chestnut colored hourglass shaped pattern on the body. This pattern is narrow on top of the back and wider on portions of the side of the body. Like other venomous snakes, the copperhead has facial pits between its nostrils and eyes, and elliptical pupils. The copperhead is not, like many other venomous snakes, a rattlesnake.

On average, a copperhead snake is 24 to 36 inches long; an average weight has not been determined. The oldest reported copperhead in the wild was 30 years old. The average life span is much less; according to studies, only five percent live to be older than eight years of age.

Five subspecies of copperhead have been identified in the United States; only two are found east of the Mississippi River. The Northern copperhead is the only subspecies found in Ohio. It also ranges from Massachusetts and Connecticut southward on the Piedmont and highlands to Georgia, Alabama, and northeast Mississippi. Its range continues west through southern Pennsylvania and the Ohio Valley to Illinois. In Ohio its range is basically limited to the unglaciated (southeast) portion of the state. Locally, the home range for a female copperhead is eight acres and 24 acres for a male.
More Copperhead Snake Pictures:


Rattlesnake Pictures, Rattle Snake Pictures


Beautiful and misunderstood

Rattlesnakes! The word alone fills most people with fear and anxiety because they have no experience in dealing with snakes. Yet we should learn to appreciate the rattlesnake as one of the most efficient and specialized predators on Earth. Many rattlesnakes struggle to survive as humans move in on their habitat. And some people feel that the only good rattlesnake is a dead one! Read on to discover cool stuff about rattlesnakes and why we need them.

Fun facts

• Rattlesnakes are also called pit vipers because they have a heat-sensitive organ known as a "pit" on each side of the head that helps them locate and aim at prey. A rattlesnake can detect prey that are as little as 1/10 of a degree warmer than their background!
• Young rattlers leave their mothers at just a few weeks old, but when it’s time to hibernate in the winter, they follow their mother’s scent trail and use the same den. Future generations will also use the same den—some have been used for over 100 years!
• The Santa Catalina Island rattlesnake Crotalus catalinensis has no rattle! It’s found only on Santa Catalina Island, off the coast of southern Baja California, Mexico. This snake climbs trees and sneaks up on its bird prey, which is easier without a noisy rattle.
• Who would guess that rattlesnakes are good swimmers? They’ve been found several miles out at sea!

More snake pictures:

Garter Snake Pictures

Garter Snake
Description: Average adult size is 20-28 inches (50.8-71.1 cm), record is 48.75 inches (123.8 cm). Adults are greenish with a light tan or gray mid-dorsal stripe. There is an additional light tannish stripe on each side of the body occupying the 2nd and 3rd dorsal scale rows above the belly. There are alternating rows of dark spots on each side between the mid-dorsal and lateral stripes. Light reddish-tan fleckings may also be present. The belly is uniform whitish-green. The scales of the upper lip are outlined with black markings. The scales are keeled, and there are 19 dorsal scale rows at midbody. The pupil is round. Juveniles are similar to that of adults.

Bull Snake Pictures

Bull Snake (Gopher Snake)
Description: A large yellowish snake with 41 or more black, brown, or reddish-brown body blotches, dark line from eye to angle of jaw. Length: 4-8 ft (1.2-2.4 m).

Black Snake Pictures

Black Snakes
black snake, name for several snakes, not all closely related, that are black in color. In the United States the name is applied chiefly to the black racer and to the black rat snake (Elaphe obsoleta), both partly arboreal in their habits. The black rat snake, also called pilot black snake and mountain black snake, is found in the NE United States. Like other rat snakes (Elaphe species), it is a constrictor and a valuable destroyer of rats and mice. It has shiny, slightly keeled scales and reaches a length of 8 ft (2.4 m). The poisonous Australian black snake belongs to the cobra family and has a hood. The North American black snakes are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Reptilia, order Squamata, family Colubridae.


Black Rat Snake Pictures









Black Snake eats frog Pictures