Draw this: you go through the woods and suddenly there is a snake on your way. Before the panic completely enters, the snake makes something completely unexpected – it turns on the back, open the mouth wide, allows the tongue to hang out and just … Lying there, died. You are ashamed. Is that really dead? Is this snake just incredibly dramatic?Welcome to a bizarre, slightly fun and wildly effective world of snakes that move death. In the animal kingdom, playing the dead – what scientists call “tonatosis” is a trick that all kinds of creatures use. But snakes? They took it to a whole new level of art.
Daves for cubes
Let’s start with one of the best actors in the Reptile world: The Dice Snake. These snakes, originally from parts of Europe and Asia, these snakes do not just play dead – they turn the whole scene into a horror movie. When threatened, the cubic snake will rotate on your back, cover its body and hang the tongue, as it was smoothed with a truck. But it’s just a warm -up. Some people take it on, lubricating themselves with their own kakal and musk. Yes, actual well -being for effect. And if this is not enough, some even bleed from the lips, a surprisingly convincing tactic that makes them look truly wounded or rotten.This is a higher combo with a sluggish body, a terrible stench and a false grief convinces many predators to see elsewhere for dinner. Logic makes sense – a length or sick animal can carry diseases or taste, so it is safer to leave them. For snake cubes, all these efforts are often worth it. In the wild, this can mean the difference between the survival and the condition of the bird lunch.
Hognose snakes
If Dice Snakes is an additional addition to the horrors, the east-hog snake-hero in a full-fledged soap opera of the snake. These snakes, which come from North America, put on what can only be described as an acting master class. Their performance usually begins with intimidation – poured into the neck to mimic cobra, hissing loudly, and apply dramatic false beats to scare you. But if the predator (or the person) does not retreat, it’s time to plan B: Death.
Hegnose flips on the back, opens his mouth, allows the tongue to hang, and then releases the musk that flows, or sometimes even a fluid, similar to what it monitors from wounds. It can even twitch several times as in the last flour. If someone tries to turn it upright, he will return back to his back, for example: “No! I’m still dead, leave me alone!” Some snakes may stay in this condition for 30 to 45 minutes, remaining motionless until they are sure that the threat has not passed.This act is so convincing that tourists and snake lovers often believe that the snake has really died of fright. No – it just takes off one of the oldest tricks in Protect’s Playbook.
Herbal snakes and other masters of art
Across Europe, the herbaceous snake takes a similar approach. It prefers wet habitats and plays of the dead with a combination of abdominal rolling, hanging tongues and releasing an incredibly unpleasant substance that flows from its cloaca. These snakes may not go quite as the bleeding from the lips, but their dedication role still landed their place in the upper level of the snake performers.Other species such as the usual Kingsnake and Rinkhals (relatives spit) also use death. Kingsnake does all this: the tail knocking, defecting, clapping on your back and lying like a cold corpse. Meanwhile, Rinkhals adds a snake, a characteristic turn-jade and simultaneously plays dead. Even some slippery snakes, as you know, are known to be rolled up and freezing when threatening, hoping that their inanimate pose buys them a second chance in life.
Why bother to play dead?
So, what is the science behind this agile behavior? It turns out that predators are usually not supporters of fixed, coarse fragrant, possibly dead food. They prefer a live, clean and relatively safe for food. That is why a fake death can become such a powerful defense tactic.In nature, it stands still or lame not always about freezing from fear. This can be a calculated strategy. Being inanimate, the snake removes sharp feelings of hunting. Add the stool to the smell of fake blood, and many predators just decide that it is not worth the trouble – or a potential disease.Interestingly, not all snakes play dead in the same way. Factors such as age, body size, past experience, or even whether the snake can tolerate eggs, can affect its decision to go full drama. Some younger snakes avoid blood flow because it can really make them more vulnerable. Others may choose to fight or escape depending on the situation.
Amazing, Wild Fulfillment
From a human point of view, these acts of death can be marvelous, comic or simply rude. But for the snake this issue of survival. And the fact that different types developed with such convincing performances shows how effective this behavior is. In a sense, these snakes participate in a difficult psychological game with their predators – one that often ends with a embarrassed predator, snakes alive, and all go their own paths.The video of these “zombies” regularly goes on the Internet, surprising people who believe that animals are either sick or die. But once you know the trick, you can evaluate ingenuity. The next time you see how the snake pulls one of these tricks, do not panic – and do not think the worst. Most likely, it is just a fake of your death, like a true reptilian dramatic king.Snakes pretending to be dead may seem strange curiosity, but they are a great example of nature creativity. If the rough force or poison is not on the menu, the smartness and a little rough theater can be the same powerful. These animals prove that sometimes the best way to survive is to throw yourself on the ground, put out your tongue and play dead as your life depends – because, frankly, it is.
