If you're not paying close attention, you could easily mistake the long-nosed tree snake for a vine wrapped around a tree branch. This skinny snake has the right build to hide among the foliage. The tree snake stays perfectly still until potential prey comes within range, then uses its superb eyesight and super-fast striking skill to make the kill with a poisonous bite. Then it swallows its meal whole.
Trickle-Down: Unlike most snakes, this one has its fangs in the back of its mouth. Venom slides down grooves in the fangs when the snakebites, slipping into the wound instead of being pumped in through the fangs.
Think Thin: The long-nosed tree snake's body is muscular but very light; its body is about as thick as a person's pinky finger. This slim, strong design helps the snake navigate through tree branches and climb up or down with little effort.
Lean and Mean[]
This snake is named for its long snout, and its preference for living in trees.
The long-nosed tree snake relies almost entirely on vision to find food in the jungle. The creature's long, thin nose slopes downward so the fields of vision from each of its large eyes overlap, giving it "stereo-vision" so it can judge distances with precision. Big, figure-eight shaped pupils are covered by special lenses that help the snake change its focus quickly and keep track of fast-moving prey in the trees. Combine all this with a venomous, lightning-fast strike and it's no surprise that this sneaky predator rarely misses a meal.
Camo Snake: The long-nosed tree snake is perfectly camouflaged in trees, and often lays so still it looks like nothing more than a vine. The creature is patient, and will wait for prey for days or even weeks without moving.
Code Blue: Underneath their green scales, some species of this snake have bright blue skin. If threatened by an enemy, the snake puffs its body full of air, stretching the scales apart to reveal this flash of color and startle its attacker.
Snakes Alive[]
- While lying completely still among some leaves, a long-nosed tree snake keeps a keen eye out for potential meals. When it spots the movement of a lizard, the snake creeps out from its hiding place, keeping its head outside the lizard's field of vision.
- The lizard is too busy searching for insects to notice the long-nosed tree snake, so it doesn't know what hit is when the predator suddenly strikes. The snake "throws" the lizard to the back of its mouth where its fangs can pierce the victim's skin.
Trivia[]
- The front of the card refers to the bite as "poisonous" instead of "venomous".