Limbless reptiles with more than 4,170 species, found on every continent except Antarctica. Flexible jaws let them swallow prey much larger than their own heads.
This entry covers a whole group, so the answers describe a typical member. For a specific one, see Python, Boa constrictor, Anaconda, Cobra, Mamba, Viper, Rattlesnake, Grass snake.
Quick answers
What is it?Reptile
Carnivore?Yes
Dangerous?Yes
Most snakes aren’t venomous, but snakebites kill an estimated 100,000 people a year, according to the WHO.
Domesticated?No
Awake when?Day & night
Hibernates?Yes
In cold winters snakes brumate, a dormancy like hibernation, except that they stay awake but inactive.
Kept as a pet?Sometimes
Do people eat it?In places
At a glance
Found inWorldwide
HabitatForest, Rainforest, Grassland, Desert, Wetland
ColoursGreen, Brown, Black, Yellow
SizeMedium
Length10.4 cm (threadsnake) to 6.95 m (reticulated python)
LegsNone
Covered inScales
Lives alone
Lives for10–30 years
Can swim
Lays eggs
In the wild
- Where it lives
- Every continent except Antarctica, and most islands. Ireland, Iceland, Greenland and New Zealand have none.
- What it eats
- Strictly carnivorous, swallowing prey whole: lizards, frogs, other snakes, small mammals, birds, eggs, fish and more.
Did you know
Smells with its tongue, delivering scent to the roof of its mouth.
A few snakes, including the boa constrictor and green anaconda, nourish their young through a placenta, as mammals do.
Often confused with
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