Easier - Snakes are long, thin reptiles. They do not have legs and they slither along the ground. In the United States, only copperheads, coral snakes, rattlesnakes, and water moccasins have poisonous bites.

 

Harder - Snakes have a long, legless, flexible body that is covered with dry scales. When snakes move about on land, they usually slide on their belly. Snake's eyes are covered by clear scales rather than movable eyelids; therefore, their eyes are always open. They repeatedly flick out their narrow, forked tongue, using it to bring odors to a special sense organ in the mouth.

 

Snakes belong to the order of animals called reptiles. This group also include crocodiles, lizards, and turtles. As with the other reptiles, snakes maintain a fairly steady body temperature by their behavior. They raise their temperature by lying in the sun or lower it by crawling into the shade.

 

There are about 2,400 species of snakes in the world. They live almost everywhere, in deserts, forests, oceans, streams, and lakes. Some are ground dwellers, others live in trees, and other snakes spend most of their lives in water. There are a few areas where snakes do not live. They cannot survive in places where the ground stays frozen the year around, so they are missing in the polar regions or at high mountain elevations. Several islands, including Ireland and New Zealand, do not have snakes.

 

Interactive Guide to Massachusetts Snakes 

http://www.umass.edu/umext/nrec/snake_pit/index.html

You can use this guide in several ways. If you are trying to identify a snake you have seen (or are seeing), go through our series of questions to identify the snake. If you know the name of the snake you want to find information on, click on the name of the snake. If you want general information on snakes go to 'Information on Snakes.'

Other State Snake Guides:

2) All About Snakes in Maryland http://www.itrapit.com/mdsnakes.html

3) EEK-Critter Corner-Wisconsin http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/caer/ce/eek/critter/reptile/snakes.htm

Wisconsin's Harmless Snakes http://www.mpm.edu/collect/snake.html

4) Snakes (Florida Fish and Wildlife) http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/natsci/herpetology/fl-guide/onlineguide.htm

5) Snakes of Missouri http://www.conservation.state.mo.us/nathis/herpetol/snake/

6) Snakes of Indiana http://herps.ipfw.edu/center/accounts/snakes/hcsnakes.htm

7) Snakes of New Jersey http://www.ash.udel.edu/ash/exhibit/reptiles/snakes.html

8) Snakes Of New York http://www.esf.edu/pubprog/brochure/snakes/snakes.htm

9) Snakes (of North Dakota) http://www.und.nodak.edu/org/ndwild/snake.html

10) Snakes of Texas http://www.zo.utexas.edu/research/txherps/snakes/

11) Snakes of West Virginia http://users.1st.net/mhall/

12) Snakes of Virginia http://fwie.fw.vt.edu/VHS/snakes_of_virginia.htm

 

Kingsnake.com 

http://www.kingsnake.com/

This links-site serves as a portal to all kinds of sites on snakes and reptiles.

 

Snakes of North America

http://www.pitt.edu/~mcs2/herp/SoNA.html

This site gives information on the classification of snakes in North American.

 

Snakes Theme at Gander Academy (Grade 5) 

http://www.stemnet.nf.ca/CITE/snakes.htm

This links-site was developed to accompany a school curriculum - - contains great links to all types of snake information.

Another Snake Links-Site:

2) Snake Information http://www.herbison.com/herbison/snakes.html

 

After visiting several of the websites, complete one or more of the following activities:   Write a Snake Story. First if you want to read some snake adventure stories, visit The Adventures of Shakey Snake? Shakey is a gentle, curious, sometimes sneaky - but always amusing - little rattlesnake who was born in a farmer's field. Here he lives, grows and learns. Then write your own snake story and illustrate it with original artwork. Share you snake story.   Make a Fun Hanging Snake. Follow the directions found at Hanging Snake to make a simple paper plate snake!!   Test Your Knowledge of Snakes. Read the Introduction on Snakes at Snake Basics to learn more about some of the most fascinating creatures on earth. You can also take a quiz at Snake Quiz(1) or Snake Quiz (2) at Simon's Snake Site.   Complete a Snake WebQuest. Adapt or follow the procedures found at one of the following webQuests:  1) Snakes Alive! (Grade 1) by Cynthia Matzatt http://www.thematzats.com/snakes/webquest.htm 2) A Pet Snake?! (Grades 1-3) http://www2.tltc.ttu.edu/thomas/classPet/1998/brownsnake/student.htm 3) SnakeQuest http://webtech.kennesaw.edu/jstokes/wquest.htm   Compare and Contrast People's Attitudes About Snakes. A very few snakes are poisonous; most are harmless. Yet some people fear snakes. Many others keep them as pets. Examine both positions. What superstitions, myths, and fallacies are attributed to snakes? What do you think motivates others to keep them as pets? What attributes of snakes makes them difficult to care for? What are your feelings about snakes?

Websites By Kids For Kid 

Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Snakes (1999 ThinkQuest Junior Project) 

http://tqjunior.thinkquest.org/5409/

This site informs others about snakes with a snake facts page, information articles, a glossary,and a games section.

 

Snake (Part of the Virtual Zoo, A ThinkQuest Project) 

http://library.thinkquest.org/11922/reptiles/snakes.htm

This section tells about snakes, their characteristics, and what they eat.

 

Snakes (1999 ThinkQuest Junior Project) 

http://tqjunior.thinkquest.org/6031/

Snakes are some of the strangest vertebrates around. Learn more about snakes. Test yourself and take the snake challenge.

 

More Snake Websites

American International Rattlesnake Museum 

http://www.rattlesnakes.com/

This museum is devoted to rattlers.

Related Rattlesnake Site:

2)Rattlesnakes ( Desert USA) http://desertusa.com/may96/du_rattle.html

 

Bayou Bob's Brazos River Rattlesnake Ranch 

http://www.wf.net/~snake/index.html

Here you can learn about the venomous snakes of the Southwest.

Related Websites:

2) Guide to Florida Venomous Snakes

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/natsci/herpetology/fl-guide/venomsnk.htm

3) Texas Poisonous Snakes http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/news/radio/99ram/PT040599.ram

 

Big Snakes from Unnatural Museum 

http://unmuseum.mus.pa.us/bigsnake.htm

This brief article contains information and pictures of the largest snakes in the world.

 

Information on Snakes 

http://www.umass.edu/umext/nrec/snake_pit/pages/info.html

This comprehensive site contains information about snakes and myths about them.

 

Jason's Snakes and Reptiles 

http://www.snakesandreptiles.com/index.html

Here you can connect to lots of information about snakes and reptiles.

Similar Websites:

2) Simon's Snake Site http://simonsnakesite.tripod.com/

3) Unofficial Snake Page by Vipul Faujdar http://freespace.virgin.net/vipul.faujdar/snakes.htm

 

Snakebite Emergency First-Aid Information 

http://www.xmission.com/~gastown/herpmed/snbite.htm

This website offers instructions on what to do if you are bitten by a poisonous snake. They are very detailed and to be followed carefully.

Related Websites:

2) For Goodness Snakes! Treating and Preventing Venomous Bites from the Food and Drug Administration http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/995_snakes.html

3) Sawyer Extractor Information http://www.xmission.com/~gastown/herpmed/sawyer.htm

4) Sawyer Snake Bite Kit http://www.baproducts.com/sawyer.htm#snake

5) Snakebit Protocol http://www-surgery.ucsd.edu/ENT/DAVIDSON/snake/index.htm

6) Venomous Snakes and Snakebites http://www.geol.ucsb.edu/~geo104a/snakes.html 

 

Snakes Alive!  

http://www.thematzats.com/snakes/

Explore this site and learn about snakes.

 

Snakes of North America 

http://www.pitt.edu/~mcs2/herp/SoNA.html

This is a photo-identification guide to snakes in North America.

Related Website

2) Nova Scotia http://museum.gov.ns.ca/mnh/nature/snakes/

 

Snake Mythology 

http://www.umass.edu/umext/nrec/snake_pit/pages/myth.html

Snakes are respected in some parts of the world and despised in others. The way that people feel about snakes is heavily influenced by cultural beliefs and mythology.

Related Websites:

2) Myths And Legends About Snakes http://www.reptileallsorts.com/snake-legends.htm 

 

Slither 

http://www.slither.co.uk/

This website on snake care and herpetology covers subjects such as basic handling, feeding and housing. It also has help on issues such as buying for the first time and choosing between wild-caught or captive bred.

Related Websites:

2) Happy Herps http://www.geocities.com/happyherps/

3) Health Problems Of Snakes http://www.klsnet.com/sicksnake.html

4) Melissa Kaplan's Herp Care Information Collection http://www.anapsid.org/

5) Snake Keeping Basics by Dr. Robert Sprackland http://www.petsmart.com/articles/article_7289.shtml

6) Snakes: A Care, Information and Fact Sheet by Animals For Awareness http://animalsforawareness.org/CS_Snakes.htm

7) Venomous Snakes As Pets? http://www.embl-heidelberg.de/~uetz/db-info/snakes_as_pets.html

 

Venomous Snakes from the Pelotes Island Nature Preserve. 

http://pelotes.jea.com/vensnake.htm

Here you can find out what venom is, what venomous snakes eat, and about different species.

Related Websites:

2) Australia's Venomous Snakes: The Modern Myth or Are You A Man Or A Mouse? by Brian Bush http://members.iinet.net.au/~bush/myth.html

3) Venomous Snakes http://pelotes.jea.com/vensnake.htm

4) Venomous.com http://www.venomous.com/

5)Venomous Snakes of Thailand http://www.scoutbase.org.uk/inter/jambo/thailand/health/snakes.htm

6) World's 10 Most Deadliest Snakes http://snake.fol.nl/Page2.html

 

Visit to the Narcisse Snake Dens 

http://home.merlin.mb.ca/~smunro/snakes/

Learn all about the Narcisse Snake Dens, in Narcisse, Manitoba, Canada. Find out why thousands of garter snakes are found here.

 

Websites For Teachers

Language Arts Snake Lessons 

http://home.merlin.mb.ca/~smunro/snakes/lessons.htm

The study of snakes allows for rich vocabulary building. Students will discuss alliterations of snake words, and study root words using "phobias" and "ologies".

 

Snakes Activities (Grades 6-10)

http://www.school.discovery.com/lessonplans/programs/snakes/activities.html

This site has a few activity ideas for a unit on snakes.

 

Slithering Snakes (K-4th)

http://nasaexplores.com/lessons/02-014/k-4_1-t.html

The objective is to build a model of a snake and identify the types of locomotion.