How do snakes see?

[psycho]

i was looking at my ball python today n i was wondering how do they see? does anybody know? also do ball pythons know who their owner is?

[littleindiangirl]

Can you perhaps explain better what you mean? I just want to say they see with their eyes....

You can read this article about their sight, I always found it a good read.
jeb.biologists.org/cgi/reprint/202/14/1931.pdf

[missi182]

With their eyes I assume.....

A bp could recognize his/her owner by scent after a while likely.

[disabled.101]

Sorry if this seems rude but ummm with their eyes

[psycho]

i mean how do they see, do they see like us all colors or black n white or what?

[Slim]

I think BP's learn who their handlers are through a combination of sight, smell, and heat signature. How all those inputs kluge in their brains is a little beyond my understanding.

[DrEwTiMe]

Ya most snakes have pretty poor eye sight so they use their other senses a lot more then actual sight.

[ev477]

I read in this scholarly article that boas are able to see in the ultraviolet spectrum. I don't think I could ever be able to find the article again... but the logic was that they evolved to do this as a result of trails that prey leave behind such as urine trails... Regardless, their senses are completely different from ours, snakes somehow get heat signatures into their perceptions which is pretty foreign to humans.

[JeffJ]

They have good eyesight according to the structure of there eyes. i read some biologists paper on them a few months back. they also can see the ultra violet spectrum. its good for following trails of urine and stuff like that. but cannot see the red light spectrum at all. due to there eye structure. they also have great night vision and of course the cool stuff thermal vision.

it was a good read. ill try to find it.

[DeepSouthSerpents]

They have much better smell than eyesight, however their ultraviolet light spectrum is pretty cool. Allows them to be expert hunters, especially at night. I was actually watching Jeff Corwin yesterday doing an experiment with water balloons, one with cold water (purple and blue to the snake) and one with hot water (yellow and orange to the snake). The viper had absolutely no interest in the cold balloon being waved in from of him but the moment the warm balloon was brought out he struck and popped it. Ball pythons have the same advantage as pit vipers, but their heat pits line the top of their mouths while vipers have one small hole on each side between their jaws and eyes. Helps them to be extra accurate when striking. This sight combined with smell allows them to imprint prey items.