There have been many animal threads. But, very little hs been said about the most misundestood of animals - snakes.
My purpose for his thead is to instill some basic knowledge about this fantastic creation made by Allaah(swt) and to help remove some falacies.
We do hae a few members that have a background in herpetology, hopefully they will join in.
I will begin just on the basics of US snakes. the US is unusual in that the vast majority of US snakes are non-venemous and snakes have ever been a major danger here. Durig my college years I did work as a heretologist and do have a reasonable background in snake facts. I believe I have handled a member of every snake species found in the USA at east once. Yes, I have ben bitten many times. But, only 3 or 4 times by any venemous ones. The bite from American snakes is seldom fatal and not usually a major medical concern. I only sought medical treatment for one bite.
I will begin this by a few words about the most venemous snake found in the USA The coral snake. It is a member of the elapidae faily the same family cobras and sea snakes are in. The venom is very potent and the bite of one could result in death. However, they are very docile, seldom bite and even when they do bite they rarely discharge any venom. Until the late 1800s they were thought to be harmless. They are very shy, secretive and rarely seen even in areas they are common. They are semi-tropical and can only live in our southernmost states. Most people believe they are very small, but that is wrong as they can grow to be over a yard in length (about one meter)
woodrow, this is a great thread (and long overdue).
i will contribute more when i have more time.
you have a lot more (and longer) experience than i do.
one thing i will say though is that snakes actually were one of the beginnings of my developing belief in god. the more i learned about these amazing creatures, and than the more about nature itself - the more in awe i felt.
in my experience snakes are extremely wonderful and gentle creatures.
great thread! it warms my heart...
p.s. needless to say, i voted "One of Allaah's(swt) most beautiful creations."
each man thinks of his own fleas as gazelles
question authority
This is a snake you do not want to be bitten by! It has the longest fangs, and inject the highest volume of venoum into its victim! You can see the amount of venoum it has by the wide jaws! The good thing about this snake is; its very calm! Its not aggressive at all. So its kind of balances out. If this snake had the speed and aggressionof a black mamba then this would be my deadliest snake in the world!
When it bites u, it looks like ur hand is rotting.
Sea snakes! I love them, although highly venomous! They rarely bite! And if they do its usually a dry bite. They are very calm creatures! I loved the way steve used to handle them.
really coool thread i love snakes but i'll never hold one, or look at one, or get closer than 70ft to one der soo cool though mashallah
lol
sisss why you likin snakes?? lol
if u really really wanna hold one, go to the store, and buy a fake toy one. feels just like a real one! ..ahem..i would kno...
I like snakes. They are just so beautiful. My cats used to bring home small brown snakes all the time and have them for dinner even then they were so cute.
I like snakes. They are just so beautiful. My cats used to bring home small brown snakes all the time and have them for dinner even then they were so cute.
:eek:ffended:
Don't you feel bad for the cats having to have to carry the snakes?! kay:
oh gross i just searched up "dead snake" in google ewwwww
*btw y do i alwayz come on wen the forums dead?
lool, its the american time! Its 3:08 am in the UK most people Zzzzzzz, and its 4:08am in rest of europe people even deeper ZzzZzzz. So american time in a way isnt that good issit
This is a snake you do not want to be bitten by! It has the longest fangs, and inject the highest volume of venoum into its victim! You can see the amount of venoum it has by the wide jaws! The good thing about this snake is; its very calm! Its not aggressive at all. So its kind of balances out. If this snake had the speed and aggressionof a black mamba then this would be my deadliest snake in the world!
When it bites u, it looks like ur hand is rotting.
you've been posting some great pix on this thread!
gaboon vipers are spectacular - they are so colourful, yet when hiding under leaf litter on the forest floor they blend in so well as to be almost invisible. it is not aggressive, but it can move surprisingly fast.
here's a cool looking close relative called rhinocerous viper. neat, huh?
each man thinks of his own fleas as gazelles
question authority
although i have never kept venemous snakes, i love rattlesnakes. my very favourite is the red diamond rattlesnake, which happens to be one of the most docile of all rattlesnakes. its range is rather small, but happens to be near where i live.
rattlesnakes do not constrict. they usually will inject their venom in to their prey and then release it and wait until it dies and then have dinner.
i mostly see them driving around in the desert at night (no not the snakes - they don't drive - not even in california!) - they like to lie one the roads to get the benefit of the lingering warmth late at night. sometimes if it's a fairly busy road, i will use a snake hook and move them off the road. the ones i see the most are sidewinders - little, but feisty.
rattlesnakes can choose how much venom to inject. there is such a thing as a dry bite, when they don't inject any at all. venom is like a survival bank account - they are careful how they spend it. one of the reasons that baby rattlesnakes can often be more dangerous than adults is that they haven't learned how to control it and will often inject the whole load.
since snakes depend on the outside temperature to control their body temperature, they must seek warmth to digest their meals. they are not "cold blooded". they are ectotherms = depend on outside temperatures. we are endotherms = meaning our body temperatures are controlled from within.
many people think snakes would feel slimy - in fact they do not.
vipers' fangs fold against the roof of the mouth when not in use. (kind of like a roll away bed). they always have some spare fangs growing, so that if they lose one, there is always another on hand to take over. (saves on dental bills).
i think i'll quit while i'm ahead.
btw, i am happy to see many of the comments here by people who, even though they are afraid of snakes, recognize it as a beautiful creature of allah.
each man thinks of his own fleas as gazelles
question authority
welll they r one of Allaah's(swt) most beautiful creations. no doubt about but to me they r scary so i couldnt vote for two i wish i can..... but im really afraid from those one which like ties all around u n like break ur bone those r reallly scary .. n im scared of em alll lol they r really creapy .. i mean i cant fight em nor kill em i mean i hate killin em ... ba3deen its haram well i want them to live as long as they r soooo far away from me : salam wa 3lykom peace
although i have never kept venemous snakes, i love rattlesnakes. my very favourite is the red diamond rattlesnake, which happens to be one of the most docile of all rattlesnakes. its range is rather small, but happens to be near where i live.
rattlesnakes do not constrict. they usually will inject their venom in to their prey and then release it and wait until it dies and then have dinner.
i mostly see them driving around in the desert at night (no not the snakes - they don't drive - not even in california!) - they like to lie one the roads to get the benefit of the lingering warmth late at night. sometimes if it's a fairly busy road, i will use a snake hook and move them off the road. the ones i see the most are sidewinders - little, but feisty.
rattlesnakes can choose how much venom to inject. there is such a thing as a dry bite, when they don't inject any at all. venom is like a survival bank account - they are careful how they spend it. one of the reasons that baby rattlesnakes can often be more dangerous than adults is that they haven't learned how to control it and will often inject the whole load.
since snakes depend on the outside temperature to control their body temperature, they must seek warmth to digest their meals. they are not "cold blooded". they are ectotherms = depend on outside temperatures. we are endotherms = meaning our body temperatures are controlled from within.
many people think snakes would feel slimy - in fact they do not.
vipers' fangs fold against the roof of the mouth when not in use. (kind of like a roll away bed). they always have some spare fangs growing, so that if they lose one, there is always another on hand to take over. (saves on dental bills).
i think i'll quit while i'm ahead.
btw, i am happy to see many of the comments here by people who, even though they are afraid of snakes, recognize it as a beautiful creature of allah.
That is a nice pic of the Red Diamondback. Rattle snakes are quite docile although just prior to shedding they can be irritable. Now that I am up in South Dakota and Minnesota it is doubtful I will see any rattlesnakes. The only ones in this area are the prairie ratlesnake, but it is very rare and seldom seen.
I agree with all of what you wrote and am especially pleased to see that no member here would kill a snake without just cause. I can understand the fear people have of them. Yet, they are creations of Allaah(swt) and are a very wonderful part of the animal kingdom.
Those of us in North America have been very fortunate as we have no snakes that pose any serious danger to any person who exercises simple caution when in the habitat of snakes.
actually, most victims of venemous snake bites are 20-30 year old guys who have been drinking and doing stupid things they had no business doing in the first place.
that's the trouble with cold climates - less snakes in general. you have my sympathy! i think texas, arizona and california have the coolest snakes in the u.s.
poor australia - it is the only country where the vast majority of snakes are venemous.
and new zealand is even worse off - they are snakeless - imagine! the horror!
each man thinks of his own fleas as gazelles
question authority
Some of the snakes are beautiful (especially the fluoroscent green or yellow snakes)...those snakes are usually harmless, small and thin.
But most of the snakes available in populated areas (including city centre) are either cobras or pythons... which are scary and dangerous.
I've seen cobras and pythons on several occasion (they're crawling on the streets) and try to avoid any contact with them.. like using alternate route...
Conclusion:
So, some of the snakes are cute and some are scary-looking... I'm scared of cobras and pythons and I never kill a snake and try my best to avoid doing it...
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i love snakes but i'll never hold one 
der soo cool though mashallah
even then they were so cute.
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lol i got scared and dropped it 4 no reason 
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