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Why do snakes lay together?
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by ianb on February 17, 2016
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In general I've noticed that snakes housed together often lay together. I especially noticed this with a female copperhead I used to have and her three year old offspring whenever I housed them together in a large cage.
Is there an advantage to this for the snakes? Is this more likely to happen if the snakes are related or the same species such as when they hibernate?
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RE: Why do snakes lay together?
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by Chris_Harper on March 31, 2016
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The benefit of both thermal mass and added security. The most extreme example would be denning rattlesnakes. 20 snakes piled together have more thermal mass than a single snake. Think about this - which holds its heat longer at night, a pebble or a boulder? Obviously the boulder. That's thermal mass. During Winter, rattlesnakes are lethargic and vulnerable to predators, but a mass of writhing snakes with 20 heads loaded with venom are much more daunting than a single snake, and a hungry bobcat would be much less likely to attempt to get a meal. Nature is efficient. When evaluating "why", always start with the survival benefit.
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