snake Archives - Animal Fact Guide

5 Cool Facts about Snakes for World Snake Day

Posted on July 13, 2026 by admin

Pssssst! World Snake Day is celebrated every year on July 16! Photo by Cavan Images / iStock.com.

Did you know World Snake Day takes place every year on July 16? To celebrate, here are five fun facts about these slithery reptiles:

1. All snakes are carnivores.

That means all snakes eat meat. In particular, they may eat mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, eggs, worms, and insects. Watch this video of an egg-eating snake swallowing a large egg whole:

2. There are over 3,000 species of snakes.

Some species, like the Barbados threadsnake, are as small as 10 cm (4 in.) fully grown. Others, like the reticulated python, can grow to be over 6 m (20 ft.) long.

Some snakes, like this Barbados threadsnake, are tiny! Photo by Velatrix, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.

3. Some snakes are venomous.

That means they produce a toxic saliva. Usually, the venom is injected into their prey through their fangs, though some species spit the venom.

King cobras are venomous. They have sharp hollow fangs that inject venom into their prey. Photo by DikkyOesin / iStock.com.

4. Baby snakes are called snakelets.

Some baby snakes hatch from eggs their mothers lay. Some snakelets hatch from eggs inside their mothers’ bodies. And some snakelets are born live (with no eggshell).

These Taiwan beauty snakelets will hatch from eggs their mother has laid. Photo by Jean Valjean de la Valdieu, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

5. Snakes can’t blink.

They do not have eyelids. Instead, they have a clear membrane that covers their eyes called a brille.

Snakes, like this green anaconda, can’t blink. Photo by nikicruz / iStock.com.

We hope you enjoyed this roundup of cool snake facts! To learn more about snakes, read our articles, King Cobra, Green Anaconda and Burmese Python.

What’s Shakin’? Baby Rattlesnakes at Lincoln Park Zoo

Posted on April 6, 2026 by admin

Shake, shake, shake! It’s nine baby rattlesnakes at Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago. Photo by Lincoln Park Zoo.

Rattlesnake babies are shaking things up at Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago! Nine eastern massasauga rattlesnakes hatched at the zoo in February. Their birth marks a huge milestone in massasauga rattlesnake conservation: the first birth of their kind at the zoo in nearly a decade.

These baby rattlesnakes are the great grandkids of the last few remaining eastern massasauga rattlesnakes in Cook County, Illinois.

These baby rattles are the great grandkids of the last remaining eastern massasauga rattlesnakes in Cook County, Illinois. Photo by Lincoln Park Zoo.

Their population has faced critical threats due to persecution and habitat loss. The zoo, along with state and federal authorities, have been working together for years to conserve this often-misunderstood snake species.

“People tend to fear eastern massasauga rattlesnakes because they’re venomous, but they’re actually a rather shy species and an important part of the Great Lakes region’s ecosystem,” said Curator Dan Boehm.

“It’s always exciting to welcome new offspring of a threatened species, and the fact that this is a local animal we’re actively working to conserve out in the field makes it even more special.”

Photo by Lincoln Park Zoo.

Eastern massasauga rattlesnakes can be found in wetland habitats around the Great Lakes in the United States and Canada. Measuring at about two feet long on average, this species is on the smaller side for rattlesnakes.

To learn more, visit the Lincoln Park Zoo website.

Read more about snakes in our post, 5 Cool Facts About Snakes.

Cutest Baby Animals of 2024

Posted on December 31, 2024 by admin

There was an abundance of adorable baby animals born or rescued in 2024. Here are a few highlights of the cutest babies:

Best Baby Mustache

As you can imagine, this was a competitive category, but the best baby mustache goes to Uki, a baby Pacific walrus rescued in Alaska by the Alaska SeaLife Center and SeaWorld Orlando.

Photo by Alaska SeaLife Center / Courtesy SeaWorld Orlando.

Leggiest Duo

The award for leggiest duo goes to this pair of giraffe calves born at the Taronga Western Plains Zoo to mothers Asmara and Zane on September 14 and 20 this year.

Giraffe calves at Taronga Western Plains Zoo.

Photo by Taronga Western Plains Zoo.

Fluffiest Fuzzball

The fluffiest fuzzball title goes to the Chilean flamingo chicks hatched at the Lincoln Park Zoo in August.

Photo by Lincoln Park Zoo.

Rough-n-Tumbliest Baby

The rough-n-tumbliest award goes to this boisterous baby black rhino, shown here romping with his mother, Mesi. The calf was born at the Taronga Western Plains Zoo in August.

Black rhino baby with mother Mesi at Taronga Western Plains Zoo.

Photo credit: Hayley Brooks, Taronga Western Plains Zoo.

Pokiest Baby

This baby North American porcupine takes the title as the pokiest baby. The porcupette was the first ever porcupine to be delivered via C-section at the San Diego Zoo.

North American porcupette at San Diego Zoo

Photo credit: San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.

Teeniest Slither

The title of teeniest slither goes to this tiny baby gartersnake born at the Arizona Center for Nature Conservation (ACNC)/Phoenix Zoo and released along with 24 others to the wild this September in an ongoing effort to bolster the population.

Photo credit: Phoenix Zoo.

Best Hugger

The award for best hugger goes to Scout, the baby two-toed sloth at the Roger Williams Park Zoo, pictured here cuddling with a favorite stuffie.

Photo credit: Roger Williams Park Zoo.

Roly-Poly-est Baby

The title of roly-poly-est baby goes to the baby pygmy hippo born at Metro Richmond Zoo in Virginia on December 7. She is currently unnamed, and you can vote on your favorite name here!

Photo credit: Metro Richmond Zoo.

As you can see, 2024 was a wonderful year for cute baby animals. We can’t wait to see what 2025 has in store.

Happy New Year, everyone!

Aww! Teeny Baby Snakes Released to the Wild

Posted on December 2, 2024 by admin

Narrow-headed gartersnakes at Phoenix Zoo

The ACNC/Phoenix Zoo welcomed three litters of narrow-headed gartersnakes in August. Photo credit: Phoenix Zoo.

In mid-to-late August, the Arizona Center for Nature Conservation (ACNC)/Phoenix Zoo welcomed three litters of narrow-headed gartersnakes.

This was happy news because narrow-headed gartersnakes are considered threatened under the US Endangered Species Act.

Tiny baby gartersnake. Photo credit: Phoenix Zoo.

To help bolster their declining populations, the ACNC/Phoenix Zoo have been breeding narrow-headed gartersnakes and releasing them to the wild.

In September, they successfully released 25 baby gartersnakes. That makes a total of 98 gartersnakes they’ve released since the start of their program!

Phoenix Zoo releasing narrow-headed gartersnakes to wild.

One of 25 baby narrow-headed gartersnakes released to the wild in September. Photo credit: Phoenix Zoo.

To help identify the snakes after they are released to the wild, the zoo marked each snake with a visual implant elastomer tag that fluoresces under black light.

Being able to monitor the snakes after release helps the scientists know if the breeding program is working.

“When we embarked on this partnership with the Phoenix Zoo, we had no idea whether breeding narrow-headed gartersnakes in human care and releasing their offspring to the wild would work,” said Dr. Thomas Jones, Amphibians and Reptiles Program Manager for Arizona Game and Fish Department.

“Now we know that it does work, and we can foresee this approach becoming an integral part of future recovery efforts.”

Heading off to start a new life in the wild. Photo credit: Phoenix Zoo.

For more information, visit the Phoenix Zoo website.