The snake is born alongside its diet.
When the mother gives birth, she gives the baby a dining plan similar to what it will have for most of its life.
For instance, if a snake species eat rodents, the baby snake will eat rodents.
If a snake species eat fish, the baby will eat fish, etc.
In other words, from birth onwards, young snakes are already pre-programmed to eat certain things.
They even know what they like and dislike.
This makes sense when you think about it; after all, snakes don’t go to school or college so they need something to teach them different things!
Of course, not all snakes eat the same things!
What Snakes Eat
There are many types of snakes and each type has its own diet.
Snakes eat different things depending on their life stage.
Mainly, the diet of a snake will depend on if they are inside or outside of their natural habitat (i.e., living in an external environment).
If the snake is inside its natural environment, it will mostly eat what it has to offer e.g., small rodents (for example, mice) and small birds.
However, if the snake lives in an external environment, it will eat anything that is easy to find!
This includes rodents (like rats), fish, frogs, etc.
Some species of snakes are solitary hunters while others like to hunt in groups.
This makes sense when you consider how useful teamwork can be.
How Their Diets Help
A snake needs to eat around once a week i.e., they don’t need to eat every day!
This is because snakes are cold-blooded animals which means their body temperature changes with the environment’s temperature.
When it’s hot, their metabolism speeds up and they need to eat more.
When it’s cold, their metabolism slows down and they don’t need to eat as much.
The snake will eat whatever it finds in its environment.
These may include small birds, small mammals (like rodents), and even frogs!
If the snake is living inside an external environment where there are many predators, it’s important that it eats quickly to avoid wasting time on extra food searching.
On the other hand, if the snake has plenty of prey around, it can take its time eating.
This way of eating is called sit-and-wait hunting.
Usually, the snake will either hide or camouflage itself so that its prey doesn’t see it coming!
In captivity, snakes usually undergo a captive diet and eat the same thing every day.
In fact, snakes sometimes eat themselves (read more about this here).
Snakes usually eat frozen rodents or freshly killed ones—mostly rats and mice.
In order to stay healthy, captive snakes also need fresh water to drink.
This is usually provided by a water bowl!
A healthy snake can live up to 20 years of age.
However, if left alone in the wild, a snake may only live for about a year.
This is because its prey animals are usually more powerful than a young snake!
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