watching full grown adults online vehemently defend their right to [checks notes] Keep giving money to businesses who are being boycotted for supporting a genocide while slathering their statements in social justice buzzwords is so fucking. Wow you guys are fucking spineless. "yall cant even boycott chick fil a" is an evergreen statement isnt it

List of Animals That Slither

New Post has been published on https://www.petculiars.com/list-of-animals-that-slither/

List of Animals That Slither

Characteristics of animals that slither

Crawling involves moving forward by specific movements, with the body touching the ground, which leads to a loss of energy through friction. The highest performance when traveling through slithering is made by animals without feet: snakes, earthworms, snails, caterpillars, etc.

Regardless of the anatomical form of each type of reptile, amphibian, mollusk, or invertebrate, each can use various actions to move around the earth, an excellent summary of the attributes they share with each other can be listed.

The circulatory system and the mind are more evolved than in terrestrial and aquatic creatures. They’re ectothermic creatures, meaning they can’t control their temperature. Generally, they have elongated tails and are slithering animals.

You might also like my articles on whether snails bite, whether anacondas eat people and the number of teeth on snakes.

They have epidermal scales that can be lost or develop throughout life. Strong jaws with or without teeth. They breathe in through the lungs, even though certain types of snakes breathe in through the skin.

Some of the most common slithering animals are snakes, worms, leeches, snails, or lizards. Crawling is a locomotory characteristic of most reptiles and amphibians.

Insects also tend to crawl when they do not fly; terrestrial mollusks such as snails and slugs crawl on a specialized foot.

Most animals that crawl do so because of their lack of legs; they must use their bodies to generate a propulsive force.

Animals That Slither

Snakes

There have been found over 3400 species of these animals that crawl, in different parts of the world, and when I talk about them, I basically mean the whole suborder that includes each of these reptiles. They belong to the order Squamata (scaly), which also includes iguanas, lizards, and other reptiles, in addition to snakes.

The characteristics of these reptiles also place them in the category of vertebrates (vertebrate animals), which are all creatures who have a backbone, for example, boa, python, mamba, cobra, snake, and other common names that are called species of some of their most common families.

They are animals that have a limb-free body that contains more than 100 vertebrae and some have more than 400, which gives them a lot of flexibility. Also, their body and movement are very well adapted, so snakes can swim, sink, climb trees, dig, jump, stand, and some can slip. In general, the snake moves in a wave-like way, moving its entire body from head to tail tip, although some only touch the front of the body to push the other and so on.

Others move with their heads up, horned rattlesnakes for example, and other species can move in a straight line due to the scales on the belly. In addition, it is observed that they can open their jaw wide because the bones of the jaw are attached to the rest of the body with little force. In addition, it has very strong refractive muscles that facilitate its mouth to open wide to ingest large prey.

Snakes have four ways to move. Because they have no legs, they use their muscles and scales to move around.

The most well-known method is the serpentine mode, in which it moves in a wavy way pushing on any surface, such as rocks, trees, or earth.

Concertina mode is more used in enclosed spaces. The snake slows down the back of the body as it pushes and expands its upper body. Then it releases the top, straightens, and pushes the back.

Surround mode is used on slippery or loose surfaces. In this way, the snake seems to put its head forward, while the rest of the body follows it.

The rectilinear way is a slow and straight way of slithering. The animal uses large scales on the abdomen to hold onto the surface while pushing forward.

Snails and Slugs

Snails and slugs move using the muscles under their bodies. They contract and stretch the muscles that propel them forward. To move, they make a complex series of wave-like movements throughout their entire body, which propel them forward. Most of the body of a snail or slug actually consists of a large leg; the body that touches the floor is known as the sole.

As the snail moves forward, the mucus comes out of a gland at the forefoot end, and so it moves over this gooey substance. The mucus is reduced to a certain amount of friction the soil causes the snails, reducing the contact to the point where a snail can crawl along the edge of a knife and suffer no cuts. Studies looking at whether mucus is a motion requirement are inconclusive, but mucus clearly helps movement to go faster and easier. This body fluid also reduces the risk of being affected by external agents and animosities and also repels the most dangerous insects, such as ants.

Worms

Worms move on a surface using hairs as anchors. In this way, they can be pushed forward or backward, using their muscles by contracting and stretching them.

Worms move using retrograde waves, alternating between swelling and contractions all over their bodies.

Caterpillars

Because caterpillars have no bones in their bodies, they use their abdomen to move. The first step is taken by their belly, with the rest of their body following a wavy movement. The caterpillars can move on surfaces such as soil and plants.

These larvae move through the frontal movement of the internal organs using muscle contraction.

Leeches

The setae (hairs) on the segments along the body and the mucus secreted also help leeches move. Leeches are of three types – freshwater, terrestrial and marine. Leeches move with the help of the anterior and posterior suction cups and longitudinal muscles throughout the length of the body.

Leeches have suckers on the upper and posterior sides of the body. This allows them to crawl using a movement with two anchors: they anchor their lower body and then propel themselves forward with the upper body.

A significant difference between leeches and other annelids is the development of cuppings at the anterior and posterior ends. In addition, the segmentation of the body wall may not correspond to the internal segmentation of the celomic cavity.

Legless Lizards

Legless lizard– Anniella pulchra

One of the most curious creatures that slither to move is the legless reptile. It has a cephalic location that cannot be discerned from the rest of the body and ends at a point.

It needs appendages to develop and has extremely bright scales along the body, which is exposed with a gray tint with darker side stripes and an amber stomach.

Two-legged worm lizard

This is a rarity that is found sporadically in certain sectors of the planet. The researcher Papenfuss collected 2.719 examples in an extensive investigation of the species he led in 1982.

Grass lizards

They are a species of non-limb lizards, native to Africa. The only members they have are some small points.

They move in a similar way as snakes do, propelling themselves forward by pushing against environmental contact points such as rocks, plants, or soil irregularities.

Do you have any advice for someone playing Morrowind for the first time? I've played Oblivion and Skyrim, but I know the mechanics are vastly different and that's a little intimidating for me.

Yes I do anon! Here is a quick rundown.

Morrowind is, mechanic wise, much closer to dungeon and dragons than to Skyrim : just like in tabletop RPGs, you have a character sheet, skills and attributes, and your actions are based on dice rolls. Each time you swing an axe or try to indimidate an elf, you have to picture the imaginary DM having you roll one! This means that your character, if not good at one skill, will miss a lot. It can be very infiurating when you’re used to more forgiving games. But if you stick to your character and don’t try to do everything at once, you’ll get it in no time!

Speaking of which - the character creation. Creating your character is when you pick said skills. In Skyrim, you start with a 0 basically everywhere, and the more you use a skill the more you level it up. Apart from the perks you unlock, you don’t loose anything when trying out a new skill tree. Morrowind lets you take a headstart and jump into the game level 1 with skills that can get very high, but in return, life will be very hard if you don’t stick to your build! So when you make a character, make sure to pick the right class/race/sign combo. As a general rule of thumb :

Have a weapon skill. If you play a mage, this will be your backup. If you play a warrior, this will be your main focus. Start between 30 and 50 in that weapon skill.

Have an offensive skill in your majors, and again, have it between 30 and 50. It will be the backbone of your combat.

I don’t recommend you put acrobatics and athletics as main skills, since these are leveled by jumping and running around, but if you get tired of moving like a dying slug why not.

Keep in mind your racial passives play a big part! 

Then, quick talk about the the bars : health, magicka, and stamina. Health and magicka do not regenerate, you need to rest for that. Keeping potions is a must have. Stamina regenerates, but you will use it when swinging your weapon and running/jumping. When you are out of breath, you miss hits, hit like a wet noodle, and people think you’re unpleaseant to talk to. Half of the people having problems with Morrowind’s combat boil down to not watching stamina bars...

Morrowind has a meta, but it’s explained in-game. You’ll need to do a lot of reading! But if you mouse over stats/skills/attributes, read ingame books and your journal and the dialog, and pay attention it’s easier.

Once you’re out in the world, you will understand very quickly that you are not the boss, just some outlander bumpkin straight out from jail. The locals will hate you, fauna and flora alike want your imminent death and everything is weird. But it’s not as harsh as you think. Listen to what the people around you have to say - NPCs will give you informations, rumors, directions, tips. Guards will protect you if you run to a town pursued by a hostile thing (unless that thing is a dark brotherhood assassin...). There’s roads you can walk on safely, public transportation all around the island. The quicker you learn how the world works, the easier it is!

here is a map of the public transportation. use it! (note : you will require an official addon to use the propylons)

Now, some stuff in the lines of “damn I wish I knew that” that I learned the hard way!

Daedric ruins are full of daedra. Daedra are strong. Very strong. Sometimes, if you take their stuff, it will summon a dremora lord to kick your ass.

Illnesses will ruin your life! Head over to the local temple or chug a potion every now and then.

The water if full of fish and dreugh, the skies of cliffracers, if you see them coming then they’re not that hard to deal with but if you don’t pay attention, a naked adventurer makes for an easy meal

When you are out of stamina and get punched, you pass out

Scribs are cute as hell and pacific! If you still atack them they will paralyze you and if you don’t have the spell/potion, have fun being chewed to death by a worm

Khajiit and argonian have claws and snouts, and thus cannot wear shoes or some helmets

If you want to murder someone in plain sight, as long as you’re not the one delivering the first blow, it’s self defense. I personally recommend failing a pickpocketing on purpose which is the equivalent of coming up to someone and loudly slapping their ass, they’ll attack you, you can axe their head off in front of the entire town and it’s ok :)

potion effects stack, you can chug 1732753237827 potions of strong and punch god in the face so hard he dies, it’s magic

if you don’t play a mage, buy enchatements, they cast spells without you having to be smart or have magicka, they are absolutely worth the money

this game has ancient artifacts absolutely everwhere for you to enjoy

There’s even more to say, Morrowind is a huge game, but if you need help you can ask me more details! I shall wish you good luck with a traditional morrowind fan blessing for newcomers : the cube is upstairs.

Philadelphia

I feel like the thought of Philadelphia is better than the eventuality. Don’t get me wrong, slathered (what a gross word) on a bagel? Woof. Pair that with some smoked salmon? Pret a Manger! It’s a classic combo and I’m not denying it. But living with an open tub of Philadelphia at home and feeling the weight of having to have it every day before the worm turns? It’s a pressure. The ticking clock before the Philadelphia water turns to mouldy wine. How many sittings does it take to cream a tub before it’s bone dry? Depends on your palette knife. There’s no decorum when it comes to cream cheese. You know how with Marmite (it’s a bit like Marmite) there’s an understanding that it’s a scant spread situation, like a delicate varnish? If you were to go in fearless with Marmite bystanders would presume you had never applied anything to toast before. It’s like that bit in Big Brother where someone murked Sree into putting raw bacon into a housemate’s sandwich because he’d never worked with rashers before. The recipient of the sandwich responded WTF as you’d imagine and Sree was unfairly placed under the nation’s microscope as the one adult who had never seen, let alone MADE, a sandwich before. Poor Sree. Anyways, what I’m saying is you can go crazy THICC with Philadelphia and onlookers wouldn’t bat an eyelid - even an alien could come to town and decanter a whole Philly oval relief, un-spread, on a piece of bread and you’d be all “…and?” 

I wanna say Philadelphia is like Polyfilla but I’ve never worked with that medium. It’s less a taste and more a feeling. A cooling agent. Touching the cold wall on a hot day. Facemask feels. Imagine upending it out of the tub and pressing your hand into it really slowly with the negative of your fingers rising in pleasing full-bodied form between the gaps of your digits. Mmm…tangible, calming...relief from the rat race. A reason to be put on earth. It’s the photoshopped cottage cheese, all cellulite eradicated. It’s not a loose mass, there’s a backbone there. You could probably pick it out like a briquette and attack it like a crisp, for a brief time period before the wet weight drifted in your grasp. The feeling to spoodge out a tub with a wooden spoon and plop it into a pan…to make some tragic recipe as instructed by Philadelphia propaganda. Not that I have, nor will I ever, but I can picture it leaving a slug trail on the side of a sauce pan on descent and standing there motionless watching it bubble at the base. I could imagine getting splinters in my tongue gumming the residue off the wooden spoon. Pleasure ist pain. Choke me, Daddy. 

I guess I’m just bored. Bored of having Philadelphia on boring brown Co-Op own brand bread. Toasting gives some integrity to the performance but on having two slices in the morning, I’ve already upped and left my body before finishing the emotionless transaction. If there was a way to absorb it contactlessly I probably would. Could just not have it, couldn’t I. After all this is day four after I rescued it from the reduced section of Co-Op but baby’s on a budget.

I hate Co-Op. Yet I find myself there most days, wandering around in my mental dressing gown, confused as to how I got there. As lifeless and uninspiring as I find the environment, it has to be said that Co-Op radio is almost unwavering in its high grade - and often resonant - tune selection. Pretty Woman by the big O, Take Me Out by Franz F, I Believe In You by Kylie. These are just some of the recent hits. Songs that shake you out of the monotony of trudging the aisles and make you want to swing your basket. Low key on some perfect pairings that lift one’s eyebrow at least and spirit at best, a soundtrack that makes you appreciate that you’re there…in the moment, by the Muller Rice. That feels like a legit feat to feel something, anything, in Co-Op. Occasionally they wield the axe a little close to the bone. For instance, I almost lost it recently when, on a somewhat low ebb, I saddled into Co-Op on a Friday evening solo mission on a reduced hunt to be greeted by the DJ dropping “Dry Your Eyes” by The Streets. What the fuck. What selector thinks it a reasonable decision to spin kitchen sink sombre bombs in one of the stalest surrounds you could wish to find yourself in at 6.30pm on a Friday night? Keep it light, for the love of God. Filthy Gorgeous by The Scissor Sisters. That kind of thing.

I picked up a reduced “Philadelphia with herbs” in Co-Op for 70p (RRP £1.99). A day later I’m wearily peeling back the foil and waging it onto some toast. All I can see is the Philadelphia is thick with chives. “Pfft” I think to myself, “Philadelphia with herbs? More like Philadelphia with CHIVES”. Oh well, carry on with my day and think nothing of it. Next morning I’m back in the standing up position smearing it on with aplomb. I’m reminded for the first time since the day prior of how chive heavy the spread is…like ten flecks a penny, I’ve not seen this many chives since I don’t know when. Since never? Since I looked at a chive plant next to a cress plant and thought…meh. I’m laughing in my head at this point, early morning delirium. “PHILADELPHIA WITH HERBS!? MORE LIKE PHILADELPHIA WITH CHIVES!!”. Haha. I’m still chuckling in my head as I reach for the tub. It seems entirely feasible at this point that this is a dud batch, a freak chive breakout edition that slipped the net. Wait, are chives even a herb? Aren’t they part of the onion family? This makes it even more obtuse. Maybe I can write to Philadelphia and get some free Philadelphia. Maybe the Metro will do a piece about my hardship. I’m reaching for the tub to inspect it for further signs of error. Is this a meme? The reduced sticker on top of the tub obscures most of the lid so I swivel my head to inspect the side of the vessel and my eyes fall on one crucial detail. The name on the side of the tub that was masked by the reduced sticker on the top. The title read…



“Philadelphia with chives”

 Oh. 

 Lol. Why did I think it was herbs? I’m writing this here to save myself the horror of accidentally relaying this story to anybody in real life. It feels like a weight off. Thank God. I just swerved that ever happening. Imagine if I was halfway through telling my neighbour that chive/herb tale, every moment regretting it like treading out onto ever thinning ice, and then others starting tuning in and asking me to tell it from the top. Imagine if the audience doubled at every utterance of the word “chive”. Imagine being in a job interview and being asked three words to describe yourself and the only words you can think of are “Philadelphia”, “herbs” and “chives”. Then you just say them because you can’t pluck anything else. Then you’re forced into recounting this story before a panel of four stone faced interviewees. And they’re dragons. On Dragons’ Den. And it’s on Britain’s Got Talent and everybody in the audience, both on TV and at home, are doing THAT Amanda Holden reaction face. Frozen. Forever. 



Phew.

 Swerved it. 

Safari Spotlight

Snakes in the Grass

Safari West is home to much more than the exotic animals in our collection. The preserve sits on 400-acres of pristine Mayacamas mountain habitat and our giraffes and cape buffalo wander within expansive oak woodlands. Stunning red and green manzanita, and smooth-trunked madrone dot the property, and cottonwoods shiver in the breeze, scattering fluffy seeds across our acreage. The property supports all manner of local wildlife as well, from the turkey vultures that sun on our south-facing slopes each morning, to the ever-present deer, to the river otters which seem to reappear from nowhere each autumn to fish and frolic in Watusi Lake.

Most of the time, our guests are excited by sightings of local fauna. Deer are always fun to spot in the wild and some of the less common animals, like the turtles, otters, hawks, and herons fascinate as well. Every so often we spot a true show-stopper like the occasional soaring bald eagle or stalking bobcat.

There are a few animals however, that when we encounter them, elicit not excitement, but fear and anxiety. If one slithers across the road in front of a truck, the usual responses range from squeals to screams. Sometimes, our guests want us to kill these sinuous creatures. On the whole, there just doesn’t seem to be a whole lot of love for snakes.

There are many, many species of snake to be found in this state, but today we’re only going to look at four. These are the four species most likely to appear on a safari tour and we’re going to talk about them because they’re amazing and beautiful creatures who deserve our admiration and respect rather than our revulsion and fear.

First up, let’s talk about garter snakes. There are several species of garter snake in our area, and telling them apart can be a little tricky (outside of color and pattern, there aren’t a whole lot of differentiating features on your average snake). For the most part, garter snakes are easy to identify based on three primary characteristics: they’re relatively small, they tend to be darkly colored, with long white or yellow striping, and they can move really, really fast.

In fact, many garter snake encounters wind up being little more than glimpses of black and yellow as the snake disappears through the grass beside a pond or stream. While not restricted to riverbanks, they are most frequently found in that kind of habitat and this probably has something to do with their preferred choice of prey. While they will eat virtually anything they can overpower, their small size means that for the most part, they stick to slugs, worms, frogs and tadpoles, and of course, the occasional rodent.

Garter snakes are among the least threatening of the local snake species. While they will certainly defend themselves if they feel threatened, their first response is always to flee the area.

In fact, that’s true of virtually all snake species including the next on our list, the California kingsnake. You may have heard the old snake-related rhyme, “red and yellow, kill a fellow. Red and black, venom lack.” There are about thirty different versions of this old mnemonic, but the message conveyed is the same throughout. If you’re looking at a red, black, and yellow banded snake, it’s probably either a kingsnake or a coral snake and which color borders which can tell you what kind. Kingsnakes are universally non-venomous while coral snakes are, and that wizened old rhyme came about so people would know whether or not what they were looking at had the capacity to kill them.

You can go ahead and disregard that rhyme if it’s something you’ve been living by. First of all, while it’s mostly true in the US, it is patently untrue south of the border and there are exceptions here as well. Secondly, one of the kingsnake species found in Sonoma County, completely lacks the red band and is a less flamboyant yellow-and-black-banded animal. Also, as a general rule, snakes in the wilderness are best appreciated at a distance and with respect, regardless of whether or not they could be venomous.

You are probably less likely to stumble across a kingsnake in the wild than the other snakes under discussion, if only because they’re very reclusive creatures. They like to hide out in the leaf litter or in rotting logs; generally staying out of sight as much as possible. If you do encounter one, you should know that alongside their absolutely beautiful coloration, the kingsnake is also relatively immune to rattlesnake venom. Care to venture why that might be?

Yes, kingsnakes are what we call “ophiophages,” meaning they eat other snakes, and rattlers are definitely on the menu. They accomplish this through constriction. Like the famous anaconda, the colorful kingsnake grabs its prey and wraps its strong body around it; squeezing it tightly enough to stop the flow of blood.

If you see a kingsnake out on safari with us or in your own backyard at home, leave it alone, it’s keeping the mice and rat population down, and helping keep the rattlers away at the same time.

Another local species that has a strange relationship to rattlesnakes is the ubiquitous gopher snake (If you, like me, grew up in the central valley, you may know them as bull snakes). The species looks very similar to our Northern Pacific rattlesnakes. They’re roughly similar in size and coloration and both present with patterned skin; something akin to brown or grey diamonds laid over tan. Further confusing the two species, the gopher snake will coil when threatened and flail its rattle-less tail while hissing. Being mistaken for a rattlesnake by a hungry predator can be a great way to stay alive. Unfortunately, exhibiting this rattlesnake-like behavior to startle and sometimes shovel-bearing humans get a lot of innocent gopher snakes killed.

Here’s a tip. If you see something that looks like it could be a rattler in the wild, there are a few key features to look for. First, while a gopher snake’s head will be wider that its neck, it won’t have the distinctive arrowhead shape of a rattlesnake’s. Second, rattlesnakes have very girthy, heavy bodies with a high, raised backbone, while gopher snakes remain relatively slender along their length. Third, and easiest to check: does it have a rattle? If it does, that’s definitely a rattlesnake.

Be aware that just like the tails of lizards, rattles can break off. Just because a snake doesn’t have a rattle doesn’t always mean it’s not a rattlesnake. Again, appreciating from a distance is the best bet for all parties.

This brings us to our last snake of the day, and the one most people are either excited or terrified to meet: the rattlesnake. While there are many species of rattlesnake slithering around these United States, only one can be found in Sonoma County. The Northern Pacific rattler is a beautiful animal with an amazing set of adaptations. Their famous (or infamous) patterned skin makes them difficult to see in the leaf litter, while the pits from which pit vipers get their name make it virtually impossible for their prey to hide. The pits in question allow the snake to detect body heat, which makes them superb nighttime hunters. Even on the blackest of nights, any warm-blooded animal will be in full view for the patient rattlesnake.

Once they’ve got a target, they simply need to strike and back away. Unlike the kingsnakes which have to restrain and constrict their dinner, the rattlesnake simply strikes once, injects a dose of its potent venom, and backs off. The animal (usually a rodent) will flee, but it’s only a matter of time before the venom kills it. In the meantime, the rattlesnake need only follow the scent of its victim. By the time it arrives, the struggle will be over and there’ll be nothing left to do but eat.

Quite often when our guides encounter a rattlesnake of the trail, the guests shriek and shift in their seats. It’s not uncommon to have somebody ask the guide to run the snake over (which of course they never do). It’s important to remember that while rattlesnakes can be very dangerous to us humans, it’s almost universally our fault when something goes wrong.

They have no interest in us. We’re too large to eat and so big and loud that we inevitably scare off anything the snake might be hunting. Anytime a rattler encounters a human, it wants one thing and one thing only: to get away. Rattlesnake bites are actually fairly uncommon and fatalities even more so (you’re five to six times more likely to be killed by lightning than by a snake bite). Well over half the time that humans are bit by rattlers, no venom is injected (again, why try to kill you? You’re too big to eat. They just want you to go away). It’s also interesting to note that the majority of rattlesnake bites happen to men, usually between the ages of 18 and 40, and about 80% of the time, alcohol is involved. Taking a look at those statistics, it’s not hard to imagine that most of those snakes made a good faith effort at getting away before they decided to strike at somebody.

All of this is to say that although snakes can be creepy and scary (and in one case, fairly dangerous), we really like and appreciate them here at Safari West. All of these species, from the garter snake on up, are playing a part in keeping a variety of pests under control. In turn, these snakes frequently become meals for a few other species we love to see; specifically our red-tailed hawks.

That said, we do have some snake-control policies in place here at Safari West. For example, we try to keep them away from the tent-camp and guest areas. The roving flock of guinea fowl are a big help in that regard. On the rare occasion that we do find a snake on the lower grounds, we simply collect them and relocate them up the hill into one of the large enclosures where they can do some good.

Next time you visit Safari West, keep an eye out. As we drive along the shores of Lake Watusi, or climb the slope of Christmas Hill, you may just see one of these unique and impressive reptiles hard at work. If you’re the squeamish type, try your best to fight that reaction, relax, and observe. You’ll be rewarded with a rare opportunity to watch an amazing player in the Sonoma County ecosystem in action.