A snake has no legs, but it can move in many ways. A concertina snake bends into curves. It straightens out to push itself forward. A sidewinding snake bends in waves. It moves side to side and up and down.

A snake's sharpest sense is smell. Its forked tongue picks up chemicals from the air, the ground or the water. Some snakes also have heat-sensing pits on the sides of the head. The pits sense the warmth given off by warm-blooded prey.

Snakes are cold-blooded. Their body heat depends on the heat around them. Snakes warm their bodies by lying in the sun. In cold weather snakes rest through the winter in a state called brumation, which is like hibernation.

Many snakes hide and wait for an animal to come close. They do not chase it. Some snakes wrap their body around an animal and squeeze. A few snakes, such as rattlesnakes, catch food with venom. They inject it through their fangs.

Stretchy ligaments hold a snake's jaws together loosely. This lets it swallow its food whole, even prey that is wide. Many snakes eat mice and rats. After a big meal, a snake does not need to eat for a long time. Burmese pythons can go four to six weeks between meals.

A snake's scales are made of keratin. Your fingernails are made of it too. Snakes shed their old skin as they grow. They shed it in one piece.

The Baroness is a reticulated python. It was found in Indonesia in December 2025. In January 2026, it measured 23 feet 8 inches (7.22 m). As of November 2026, it is the longest wild snake measured with proof.

Snakes live on every continent except Antarctica. A wild snake is best left alone. It will usually go its own way. If one is near a home, a grown-up can call animal control.

Words to know

• concertina: folding movement
• venom: injected poison
• fangs: long teeth
• sidewinding: waving sideways
• keratin: fingernail stuff
• brumation: winter rest