Snakes' killing prey methods

ok so i have a question.....everywhere i read there seems to be 2 catergories for how snakes kill there prey....they either constrict it, or its killed with venom

are there any serpents that dont use either of these methods? If so what are they ?

Hmmmmmmm..... well, egg-eating snakes don't have to kill the eggs they eat. LOL And I believe there are some snakes that eat their prey live, simply because they hunt things that can't fight back and escape, such as rodent pinks, or worms or something. Other than those exceptions, I can't think of any other way a snake would hunt/kill.

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Originally Posted by JLC

well, egg-eating snakes don't have to kill the eggs they eat.

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I saw something interesting the other day about an egg eating venomous snake. It actually bit/killed the parent so that it could have free reign over the clutch of eggs. Kinda remarkable.

oh yeah i forgot about egg eaters!

thanks guys :)

Garter snakes do not constrict or use venom. They just swallow their prey live. Granted they are small snakes, and as far as I know don't eat anything bigger than frogs. I also seem to recall reading that indigo snakes don't constrict either. I believe they actually stun their prey by coming down on them like a hammer.

Rear-fanged hognose snakes have a mild venon, when they grab frogs, salamanders, and other amphibians that they eat, they just keep chewin' until their prey submits, then swallow whole.

The boomslang from Africa is another rear-fanged snake, with highly toxic venom. They feed similar to the hognose...just keep chewing until their prey dies.

i read that south american cribos grab their prey and dislocate it's neck or back and that some snakes crush their prey up against a tunnel wall, etc.

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Originally Posted by mr~python

and that some snakes crush their prey up against a tunnel wall, etc.

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Sounds like something a ball python would pull off......One of my females killed a rat this week w/o striking, just pinned it against the floor and killed it with maybe half of a coil...pretty fascinating...

Well, there is a crab eating snake that kills by venom, but if the crab is too large, it will actually tear off individual legs and eat them. The only snake to take off 'bites'!

There are also several snail-eating snakes that grab the 'foot' (flesh) of the snail, then pin the shell against somethin0g (or keep it in their coils) and tear the snail out. They usually have specially formed jaws that fit easily into the shell to ease the snail out.

all of those ways are pretty neat, i didnt figure a snake would actualy take "bites" , learn something new everyday :)

We caught a really interesting show on National Geographic I think it was, awhile back on the egg eaters. Amazing how they could swallow such a relatively large single item (egg) and then there is this protrudence on their bone structure that breaks the shells of the egg as it passes. The contents are ingested and the egg shell is very tidily regurged. Just amazing to watch!


Our milksnake doesn't constrict. She will sort of sit on her prey item, presumably to suffocate it (not sure really) or just eat it right up. She does tend to go from the butt first which I assume would be a smart thing to do if you are eating a whole, live prey item.

Yeah.. I believe the egg eaters are the only snakes to not have teeth. Their substitution is the extentions in their vertebrae that 'pop' the egg.