If you are a person who love to know animal facts and want to know more, you are at the right place. Here is answers some information about reptiles them for your checking out.
1. There are more than 8,000 species of reptiles on the planet, and the live on every continent except Antarctica (where it is too cold).
2. "Cold-blooded" is not the best way to describe reptiles. Their blood is not necessarily cold by itself. But they are ectothermic, which means they get their body heat from external sources. Reptiles cannot regulate their body temperature internally as humans do.
3. Reptiles are among the longest-lived species on the planet. For example, large tortoises such as the Aldabra tortoise can live for more than 150 years. Alligators can live nearly 70 years. Ball pythons, a popular type of pet snake, can live up to 40 years (consider that before getting one as a pet).
4. Most of the world's snakes (nearly two-thirds) are non-venomous. Only about 500 snake species are venomous, and of those only 30 - 40 are considered harmful to humans. In other words, less than 2 percent of all snakes are considered harmful to humans.
5. With regard to reptile fact #4 above, the opposite is true in Australia. There are actually more venomous snakes in Australia than non-venomous snakes. The inland taipan is one of the most popular of these venomous Australian snakes. Australia is the only continent where venomous snakes outnumber non-venomous snakes.
6. It is a fact that more Americans die each year from bee stings than from snake bites.
7. Certain types of snakes can go months without eating. This is especially true of the big constrictors, such as the Anaconda and the reticulated python. Snakes eat large meals (relative to their body size), and they have much slower metabolisms than we humans have. This partly explains how they can go so long between meals.
8. Most kinds of reptiles do not tolerate the cold very well. But the Blanding's turtle (Emydoidea blandingii) is sometimes found swimming under the ice in the Great Lakes region of the United States.
There exists a lot of amazing creatures in our world that are bound to make you surprise. Do you want to check out our long and rich source of tigers facts in your spare time?
9. Snakes and lizards flick their tongues in the air to capture scent particles. They don't smell through their noses like you and I. Instead, the use their tongues to collect scent particles and then pass the particles over something called a Jacobson's organ to decipher the air around them. This is partly how reptiles hunt for food.
10. True to its name, the African egg-eating snake (of the genus Dasypeltis) prefers to dine on the eggs of other animals. It will swallow the egg whole, and then use tiny "spikes" extending internally from its spine to crack the egg open and swallow the nutritious contents. Lastly, it will regurgitate the unneeded egg shell in a neatly folded piece.
11. Contrary to popular belief, chameleons do not change their color to blend in with different backgrounds. Chameleons are naturally camouflaged with their surroundings (most are predominantly green to match their treetop environment). The fact is that chameleons change their color in limited ways, usually by brightening or darkening their skin. But these color changes are related to temperature regulation and emotional changes. A frightened or angry chameleon, for example, will become extremely bright in color.
12. The skulls of snakes are made up of many small bones that are interconnected in a flexible fashion. This is entirely different from a human skull, which is one solid piece. This allows snakes to expand their jaws and heads in order to eat prey items larger than their heads. A common garter snake, for example, could swallow a frog more than twice the size of its head. Large constrictors such as the anaconda can expand their jaws to an almost alarming degree!
13. Many people think that reptiles are slimy. But the fact is that reptiles do not have sweat glands like you and I have, so their skin is usually cool and dry. I have several pet snakes for example, and people who touch them for the first time always say the same thing: "Oh wow, they're not slimy at all."
14. The scales of all snakes (and many lizard species) are made of keratin, which is the same substance that makes up the hair and fingernails of humans.
15. Snakes shed their skin in relation to their growth rate. A young snake will shed more often because they typically grow fastest during the first two years of their lives. An older snake will shed less often as its rate of growth slows down
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