Homeland and origin of the snake, behavior in the wild, reptile breeding, known species of snakes and their features, advice on keeping a house, buying a snake. When it comes to choosing a pet, you need to be guided by your personal tastes and preferences, because there are people in our world who have love not for cats or dogs, but for completely different, unusual animals in society. These include a variety of exotic animals, fish, beetles and reptiles.
Today, if you have an idea to put a terrarium in your house, in which a snake will live, this is a completely realizable undertaking. Go to the pet store and choose and buy the living creature that you like, even this very snake.
When choosing such a home pupil as a reptile, your living space should be taken into account, because it depends on how much space you can allocate for your new friend, and for such an original pet, it should be enough so that he can live comfortably next to you.
If you are looking for a medium-sized snake, turn your attention to snakes, these mesmerizing creatures are perfect for living with people. They are quite friendly, not particularly demanding in caring for themselves, absolutely safe for humans, and several times less than, for example, boas.
In order for both you and your new roommate to be able to live favorably on the same territory, you should learn more about this living creation of nature.
Pedigree and native land of the snake
Already (lat. Natrix) - this concept includes a large number of the most, that is, various types of snakes, which by their nature are not poisonous. These long representatives of the animal kingdom have been classified by scientists into the class of reptiles, the squamous detachment and the narrow-bodied family.
The large genus of snakes is quite diverse and includes many very different representatives, some of them, unfortunately, have not survived to our time. The reason for the extinction of some representatives of the already-like are not only predators, which destroyed these reptiles at all times of their existence, but also natural disasters and even people.
It is man that is one of the leading reasons for the disappearance from the face of our planet of many species, not only of snakes, but of animals in general. This is due to the massive destruction of the natural habitats of certain animals, deforestation, the expansion of the territories of cities and towns, as well as hunting for animals in order to obtain food and valuable skins or furs. The natural habitats of these reptiles are quite extensive and depend on the specific species of snake. Traveling around the globe, it is possible to meet such extraordinary miniature snakes in Europe, Russia, the Far East, the USA, Brazil, Argentina, Eastern Bolivia, Mexico and many other parts of the world.
Features of the behavior of snakes in the wild
An ordinary one is perhaps the most active and nimble representative of his large family. By its nature, this is a very peaceful and completely non-aggressive scaly, the greatest feat that he is able to perform at the sight of any animal or even a person is to simply run away quickly. If he did not have time to escape and still fell into the hands of a predator, he begins to intensely imitate a fierce look: throws his head forward and hisses in a peculiar way, this technique sometimes greatly scares off his enemies, perhaps they think that a deadly poisonous snake has fallen into their clutches …If these frightening actions do not bring a positive result, then they begin to use the most powerful means of protection - this is a sharp disgusting smell, which at the very moment discourages any, even the most hungry, predator from the desire to feast on a snake.
These reptiles most often use frogs and various rodents as food products, but since these active "animals" are excellent swimmers by nature, they can occasionally pamper themselves with a fish that they catch on their own, because they can stay under water for a long time.
Continuation of the genus of snakes
The beginning of the mating season for these reptiles falls in mid-spring, already at the end of April, and occasionally in early May, snakes begin to actively mate. Snakes are among those species that lay eggs, this time falls on the period from mid-July to the end of August. The number of eggs in one clutch is directly proportional to the body length of the snake female. The shortest female snakes, whose body length does not exceed 65–70 cm, lay about 7–17 eggs, while the largest females from the snake family can form a clutch of 45–55 eggs.
The incubation period is on average 30–40 days. At the end of this period, small baby snakes are born, their body length is approximately 20-30 cm, and their body weight does not exceed 5-6 grams.
What does it look like, types and features
- Ordinary already. This is probably the most common and known to us snake, because it can be found not only in forests, but also in many cities and villages on the territory of Russia. Sexual dimorphism in snakes is possible to notice immediately, because the body size of males is much smaller than that of females. Females of these scaly snakes usually grow up to 80-100 cm, but there are also such specimens, the body length of which can sometimes be over 150 cm. for this reason, they are sometimes referred to as "yellow ears". Sometimes these "ears" are painted in white or orange colors.
- Already grassy keeled or green too. This native of North America is one of the most beautiful and brightest snakes. Its graceful thin body grows in length no more than 100 cm, the head is practically not separated from the neck, and besides, it differs very little from the body in diameter. This herbal eccentric is notable for its color, which is an elegant combination of emerald, green and cream colors. Moreover, the dorsal side of the body is much brighter and more noticeable than the abdominal area, which is usually painted in calmer tones.
- Giant Brazilian too. Following from his name, you can already guess about the habitat of this reptile in the wild. In his homeland, he prefers to settle near water bodies, in shrub thickets and in secondary forests. He tries to spend most of his free time in the water. This smooth giant from South America differs from its other relatives in the size of its body, this majestic snake grows up to 2, 2–2, 6 m in length. It has a shortened head, which is slightly rounded in front. Males differ from females by the color of the skin. The body of the male is painted by nature in brown-yellow shades, on the main background it is easy to see a beautiful pattern of black color, which is represented by various irregularly shaped spots in combination with transverse stripes. A black line can also be seen on the side of the head, this stripe connects the eye and neck. The body of the female appears before our eyes in calmer light brown tones, the pattern on it is poorly expressed.
- The water one. This reptile is common on almost the entire coast of the Black and Azov Seas, as well as estuaries that are located nearby. This reptile cannot live a day without reservoirs, because it spends most of its life in them and it absolutely does not matter in which water to dive - in fresh or in salt. Since this one already leads a predominantly aquatic lifestyle, the main part of its diet is made up of fish, occasionally amphibians. At night, it lives on land, and at sunrise it goes on spearfishing. This snake is not particularly small in size, usually this water hunter grows up to one and a half meters. This already-shaped body has no “identity card” in the form of yellow temporal spots. In their usual place, there is a small mark, which in its shape resembles a triangle with its tip facing forward. The coloration is usually represented by an olive main tone and dark brown spots over it. In nature, there are cases of birth and monochromatic water snakes, both olive and dark brown and even black.
- Watery already black morph. This is not a separate species of snakes, but rather a monochromatic subspecies of the aforementioned water snake. It differs from its multi-colored relative in that it can go in search of food not only to the bottom of a reservoir, but also to forest edges and even to fields sown by humans. In addition to fish, frogs and toads, his diet also includes rodents, lizards, insects and even small birds.
- Asian striped too. This snake for its permanent residence chooses a wide variety of areas, such as rice fields, ponds and ditches, it can also be found on personal plots in Indonesia and Singapore. This minke can not only swim and dive, but also quite calmly conquers the tops of low trees and bushes. It differs from its relatives not only in its outstanding appearance, but also in that it is by nature a weakly venomous snake, but the poison that is contained in its body is completely safe for humans. It usually uses an unpleasant scent as a remedy. This type of already-shaped is very well suited for keeping at home, since it rather quickly becomes a completely tame pet, because by its nature it is a very calm and rather peaceful living creature. This is a rather compact snake that grows only up to 70 cm in length. The appearance of this "living rope" is simply breathtaking: a graceful slender body that starts with a small, slightly extended head. The main color tone is Asian scaly brown with a slight yellowish tint; regular longitudinal stripes can be seen throughout the snake's body, the length of which is usually from the base of the head to the end of the tail. The width of these stripes is different - the lateral ones are wider than the lines located along the spinal column. On the dark surface of the head, there are small spots of light shades. In the projection of the chin, lips, neck and abdominal cavity, there are dark and light shields, which alternate with each other in a strict order.
- Tiger already. The largest population of these peaceful reptiles is observed in Korea and Japan. He also tries to choose areas with high air humidity as his home, near at least small bodies of water. The main dish in his daily menu is toads and frogs, sometimes he can taste fish, rodents and birds. As for its appearance, this is a medium-sized snake, its body length is up to about 115 cm. The color is very variable: sometimes the main skin color of the snake is green, on which you can see bright contrasting spots, but in nature there are individuals of both blue and black bronze color scheme. The most characteristic feature of this species is the presence of coal-black spots and stripes along the spine and on the lateral surfaces of the body, at the first glance at this "beast", one can involuntarily notice the similarity of the skin pattern with the ornament on the body of the Bengal tiger.
Keeping a snake at home
By purchasing any pet, you agree to be friends with him and take care of him as a full member of your family, and even more so as a snake. After all, a snake is not a cat and a dog, it will not be able to meow compassionately or bark when it gets hungry or when it has health problems. Attentive and loving owners, usually within a few weeks of living with such an unusual companion under one roof, begin to see and understand what their pupil wants at the moment, whether they read by the eyes, or understand some kind of serpentine language, or maybe it is still a strong spiritual connection.
This is not a pet that is very difficult to care for, moreover, it is one of the most unpretentious pets, but if you resort to negligence in this minimal care, then you can simply ruin the life of this creature. For this reason, before you bring the snake into your home, think carefully about everything, because this is not the kind of "animal" that can be taken into good hands.
One of the main guarantees of a reptile's comfortable living is the spaciousness of its personal home. As an apartment for a snake, a horizontal terrarium is perfect, the area of which should be quite large; when choosing a terrarium, it is necessary not only to take into account the size of its future inhabitant, but also the fact that it must have a pool with clean water. There, a smart reptile will spend most of its time and drink water from there, so you need to change the liquid regularly so that it does not stagnate or get dirty. With a water change, you will often have to change the flooring, since during the bathing process, a little liquid will be poured out, respectively, the floor of his house will be wet, and this is a suitable environment for unwanted residents, and mold.
You can use ordinary sand or peat as a flooring, sand can also be poured onto the bottom of the pool. It is recommended to put a sufficient amount of moss in the terrarium, your friend will bury himself in it, hiding from prying eyes, because he also needs peace.
The terrarium can also be decorated with a variety of stones, branches and driftwood, between these elements the animal will not only feel more comfortable, but in the process of traveling through its possessions it will begin to crawl over various natural obstacles with great pleasure. It is also necessary to make several shelters, there the scaly will rest at night, and hide during molting.
Another rule for a good reptile life in a terrarium is constant temperatures, which should be maintained with special heating appliances. One corner of his house needs to be made hot, the temperature there should be 25-27 degrees, and in the other, nothing needs to be installed - it will be a cool corner. Your already-shaped person will choose by itself where it will be better at this or that moment. It is necessary to start feeding the snake at home with the same products that it eats in the wild. These are rodents, fish, frogs and various insects that are sold in markets and pet stores. To begin with, the food must be alive, and over time you will not only be able to accustom your friend to non-living food, but you will also understand which of these products he likes best. Feed your pet vitamin and mineral supplements from time to time. Sometimes mineral water can be added to the water of its pool, believe me, the snake will be very happy with this surprise.
Purchase and price of a snake
The presence of this or that reptile in pet stores in your city and on the pages of online stores strongly depends on the type of snake that you liked, and the pricing policy also depends on the specific type. The price of one specimen of an ordinary snake varies from 500 to 2,000 rubles, and the cost of a giant Brazilian snake ranges from 10,000 to 28,000 rubles.
Find out more about what it looks like and how to keep it at home:
