Can snakes remember faces?

Snakes do not have any sort of social bond, nor the intellect nor memory to recognise and remember an assailant. Apparently Bollywood may be partially responsible for this myth.

While a snake is capable of identifying a familiar scent, the snake has no concept of being a pet and therefore cannot identify the difference between owner and potential prey. Rest assured: Since most pet snakes are not capable of consuming anything human-size, it is rare they will attempt to feed on a human.

Snakes can recognize themselves

Research published in the scientific journal Behaviour, shows that garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis) can recognize their own chemical cues as distinct from those of other snakes – this is considered the snake equivalent of recognizing yourself in the mirror!

A scientific study of rattlesnakes conducted in 2015 showed that they have the ability to use past experiences to predict future events, which essentially demonstrates the use of memory. Whether this applies to all snakes is another matter, but there's definitely some evidence to support this hypothesis!

Snakes and other reptiles are not social animals. They do not form communities, have friends, or even nurture their own young. Unlike mammals that can demonstrate complete emotions like love, joy, or even jealousy, snakes do not demonstrate deep feelings like these.

Snakes are able to recognise and distinguish between humans and may recognise the scent of their owner as familiar or positive with time. However, snakes are unable to view humans as companions so cannot form a bond with their owner like other pets can.

Snakes do not have an external ear, but they do have all the parts of the inner ear that we do. Their stapes—called a “columella”—is slightly different from ours in that it connects to the jawbone, enabling them to sense vibrations. However, they can only hear a portion of the sounds we hear.

With the exception of a few species that have adapted to daytime hunting, most snakes do not see well. Generally they can see shapes but not details. This poor eyesight probably owes to their evolutionary history as burrowers, living in the dark where eyes weren't much use.

Snakes have mental activity and mental events. They do not think abstractly. Their mental activity is based primarily on the immediate situation and feelings and instincts.

“Those are situations where a strike might happen.” Both venomous and nonvenomous snakes are extremely wary of humans and are not prone to strike. A bite is their last-ditch effort to avoid harm. Simply leaving a snake to do its job in the landscape is the best way to avoid a bad encounter.

Snakes do not typically like being pet, but some that become accustomed to being handled don't mind the human interaction. Snakes can definitely feel when you pet them but the sensation is not as desirable as it is for many domesticated animals.

Snakes can get traumatized when they have no place to hide, so give your snake both room to move and accessories to feel secure.

Snakes spend much of their time sleeping. On average, snakes tend to sleep about 16 hours per day, though some species can sleep up to 22 hours a day! In fact, some species of snake brumate (or go dormant) during the winter for as long as eight months.

The scientists also tested the snakes' personalities—namely, whether they were “shy” or “bold,” the two main traits evaluated in wildlife. To see if an individual garter snake was bold, they put it in a shelter alone. Shy individuals tended to stay put, and rarely ventured into the larger enclosure.

Snakes may not be loyal per-se, however they may recognise the scent of their owner, and associate them with 'safety. '

It is believed that snakes feel a kind of pain, but not the same kind of pain that humans would feel. PETA, for example, describe snakes as being able to stay conscious and even feel body sensations for a long time after they have been decapitated, and this is because of their slow metabolism.

Snakes are highly intelligent in their own way like in the case of hunting and tracking prey with ease and luring prey into a trap by wiggling its tail to appear like a juicy insect and learning the ability to swim and climb trees and all.

Snakes, like most animals, have no desire for human contact and should be treated with respect and given the chance to go about their lives in peace. However, as the temperatures get hot, we will often see snakes get into buildings or hang out under vehicles and other manmade places to cool off.

It goes without saying that snakes also have emotions, but unlike most animals, they can only show two emotions: fear and aggression.

Sight: Though poor, like reptile eyes it can sense a fast moving object. So it is a good idea not to move too fast when confronted by a snake. It will most likely never see you.

The truth is that snakes actually lack the ability to hear and thus do not hear the music. Instead they respond to the vibrations and movements of the naskar.

Vipers, pythons and boas have holes on their faces called pit organs, which contain a membrane that can detect infrared radiation from warm bodies up to one metre away. At night, the pit organs allow snakes to 'see' an image of their predator or prey — as an infrared camera does — giving them a unique extra sense.

Snakes have a good sense of smell; however, they can't interpret what they smell in the same way that a dog does. While they can't “smell” fear, they definitely react to YOUR fear when you show it.

The study found snakes to be dichromatic, meaning they can see two primary colours, blue and green. In addition to their colour vision, many snakes have developed a sensitivity to UV light, allowing them to see in low light conditions. This adaptation was found in the majority of snakes analysed in the study.

The inland or western taipan, Oxyuranus microlepidotus, is the most venomous snake in the world, according to Britannica. Native to Australia, this snake has the deadliest venom based on median lethal dose, or LD50, tests on mice.

Similar to a dog's growl, a snake's hiss generally means “back off!” Snakes usually hiss when they feel threatened, angry, or annoyed.

And coming in at the most intelligent reptile on the earth is the Monitor Lizard. Monitor Lizards can grow to be over a metre long and weigh more than 10kg. Monitors belong to a family of carnivorous lizards called the Varanidae.