Snakes of Armenia

Before we talk about the snakes of Armenia, let’s look at the characteristics of these reptiles. Snakes are one of the most amazing creatures on earth. Their unusual appearance, many interesting behavioral features, their unique movements and, of course, poison in one part of them, attract and interest people from ancient times.

Many myths and legends about snakes have been created. Now, with the development of science, these legends are exposed, and at the same time, the most unusual features of the behavior of snakes are revealed. People’s fear of snakes is so great that they are ready to attack any snake that they see on the way. Man considers it his duty to kill the snake and be proud of it.

However, most of these reptiles are harmless, useful animals that deserve protection. No animal hunts rats and mice as good as a snake. If we put a nonvenomous snake to our warehouses and barns, we can get rid of all the rodents. And the surviving rodents will be so scared that they will no longer return to these places. There are 2700 species of snakes in the world, 450 of which are venomous.

Snakes are common in all continents, except Antarctica. They can be found everywhere, from oceans and seas to alpine mountains, from underground caves to tall trees. We can say that they did not conquer only the airspace. Although, some South Asian tree snakes jump from tree to tree as if they are flying.

Biology

*Color

In zoos, snakes seem very colorful to us, because in the world there are snakes of all colors. But actually the color of the snake is almost the same as its habitat, and it is very difficult to notice them. This means that in the same habitat bezoar goat, hare, partridge, and snake have the same color. They seem to adapt to the environment they live in.

Young snakes have a brighter color, and adult snakes are paler.

The shredding of the skin is very interesting. Snakes shed their skin 2-4 times a year. The upper layer of the skin is separated from the head and is removed like a sock. The skin of a healthy snake sheds completely.

*Hearing

Snakes are practically deaf, they don’t have ears. They have an inner ear that is located in the cranial bones. That’s why the sound does not reach the snake until the earth or air shakes. It hears fluctuation placing the chin on the ground.

*Vision

The vision of snakes is not very developed. That’s why they often miss when they attack the prey. The reason is that the snakeskin, passing above the head, forms a transparent coating on the eyes. When the snake changes its skin, the snake’s vision improves. But new skin gradually thickens, ages and blurs the coating on the eyes.

*Sense of smell

Snakes have a very developed sense of smell.

*Perception

The most important organ of the snake’s perception is the tongue. The snake can release its tongue even with its mouth closed, through the opening in the upper jaw.

The tip of the tongue is bifurcated, which helps to determine different distances. Touching the air or objects, the snake pulls its tongue back to its mouth, where it determines the distance from traces of food, water source, other snakes and so on. Unfortunately, most people mistakenly consider the snake’s tongue to be venomous. When they see the snake’s tongue they think it’s venomous and try to immediately kill it.

*Thermal sensitivity

Unlike humans, snakes have organs of thermal sensitivity. With the help of these organs, they can feel the heat emanating from their victim.

Snake movements

Wavy movements of snakes have a strong effect on a viewer and provide aesthetic pleasure. Snakes can’t move on flat surfaces or on glass, because they lean on uneven ground when they move in a wavy motion. At the same time, the fastest snakes move at a speed of 6-8 km/h.

That is why the snake, following a man, will never be able to catch up with him, because on average a person walks at a speed of 6-8 km/h. In fact, snakes never actually chase people. Snakes living in sand switched to another mode of transportation, the lateral one. This is also a very interesting movement.

By the way, all snakes on earth, without exception, swim very well.

Feeding and diet of snakes

All snakes are strictly carnivorous. They feed on both living and dead animals. Snakes never chew their victim, they swallow it completely. After ingestion, the food is digested with the help of special substances. In the stomach of one of the killed snakes, 12 mice were found. A reticulated python or boa constrictor can swallow the victim up to 25 kg and more.

However, snakes do not eat much and can remain without food for weeks or even months. There is even a snake that did not eat anything for two weeks.

Venomous snakes bite the victim, wait for it to die, and only after that swallow it. In addition, the venom destroys the victim and helps it to digest quickly. All teeth of the snake, except two venomous ones, are strongly inclined back and are adapted to swallow food. There are two venomous teeth. They are tube-shaped and located in the upper jaw.

When the snake’s mouth is closed, the venomous teeth lie in the mouth with sharp edges back. When the snake opens its mouth, the teeth straighten and take a “fighting” position. This can be compared to a folding pocket knife. Every few weeks, these teeth are replaced with new ones.

Snakes of Armenia

Armenia is rich in snakes. There are 22 species of snakes in Armenia.

Of these 22 species, only 4 are venomous. Venomous snakes are:

1. Blunt-nosed viper (Macrovipera lebetinus)
2. Armenian viper  (Montivipera raddei)
3. Darevsky’s viper
4. Armenian steppe viper

The bite of the steppe viper is not deadly for humans.

The number of nonvenomous snakes in Armenia is more than the number of venomous snakes. Nonvenomous snakes of Armenia are Dice snake (Natrix tessellata), European cat snake (Telescopus fallax), Montpellier snake (Malpolon monspessulanus), Red-bellied racer (Dolichophis schmidti) and so on.

In fact, 5 of 6 snakes in Armenia are nonvenomous. Considering also that venomous snakes are active in the evening, it turns out that in the afternoon we mostly encounter nonvenomous snakes, which are not dangerous.

Let’s talk about venomous snakes common in Armenia:

Blunt-nosed viper (Macrovipera lebetinus)

This is a very venomous snake, the bite of which often leads to death. The body of a blunt-nosed viper is thick, the length can reach 2 meters. The head is strictly triangular, the corners are convex. The back is gray, with long stripes on the back and small dots on the sides.

Blunt-nosed viper lives on the rocky slopes of gorges, in gardens, in piles of stones and in other areas with poor vegetation. In these places, the snake ambushes birds and small animals drinking water here: mice, frogs, lizards, even baby hares.

This snake also loves vineyards, as the local humidity and water attract frogs, mice, and water rats. And when the grapes start to sweeten, sparrows, starlings and other small birds also rush here. That’s where the blunt-nosed viper awaits them.

In the summer heat, the blunt-nosed viper is almost not seen, as it sleeps in its nest. It loves the darkness and in the summer goes hunting at night. In the Ararat valley, gardens and sowing are watered mainly at night, barefoot. Because of this, there are often cases of biting of the snakes, since people accidentally step on them. Blunt-nosed viper is a viviparous animal, which in August gives birth to 10-15 snakelets.

In the habitat of the blunt-nosed viper, there are few other species of snakes. It seems to be cleansing its territory of other snakes.

Armenian viper (Montivipera raddei)

Armenian viper lives on rocky slopes, covered with small trees and bushes. This is a large snake, length reaches 1 meter. The tail is very short – 5-6 cm. There is one large scale on each eye that gives the impression of an eyebrow. 

The back is gray, has a dark-colored zigzag layer and on the sides, it is covered with dark dots. The skin color on the abdomen is yellowish.

Armenian viper feeds on small mice, birds, insects, loves to haunt locusts. Armenian viper leads a nocturnal lifestyle. Goes hunting after sunset, before midnight. Armenian viper is also viviparous, in August it gives birth to 4-9 snakelets, which from birth can bite and poison a person.

A person very rarely dies from a viper bite. Mostly children die if the bite was in the face. But even in this case, people believe that the cause of death is improperly provided assistance.

Do not confuse the viper with grass snake or other nonvenomous snakes. On the head of the grass snake, near the neck, there are 2 orange or yellow spots, but the viper doesn’t have them.

Darevsky’s viper

This is a venomous snake from the viper family. They are found in the southwestern part of Javakhk mountain range, in the regions of Shirak and Ashotsk. Darevsky’s viper is an endangered animal, which is included in the IUCN Red List. These snakes are active from early May to September. The body length is 13-42 cm, the tail is 6-8 times shorter than the body. The back is mostly gray, light-gray, yellow-gray or greenish.

Females are usually larger than males. They hibernate from the second half of autumn to mid-spring. Mating season is in May. From late August to late September 2-8 snakelets are born.

Vipers, Darevsky’s viper, in particular, play an important role in ecology and cannot be harmed. They mainly feed on locusts, crickets, and small rodents. It means that they regulate the number of pests. The destruction of these snakes can indirectly affect agriculture. It is known that a competent vineyard owner will never harm a snake, because if there is a snake in the vineyard, then rodents and other pests will not spoil the harvest.

Darevsky’s viper is under the protection of the “Lake Arpi” national park. Since 2004, a number of measures have been developed and implemented for the separation and preservation of important biotopes.

Armenian steppe viper

As already mentioned, the venom of this snake is not fatal to humans, but deadly to horses, sheep and small mammals. One of the enemies of this snake is a Montpellier snake, which for some reason among all the food prefers the meat of the steppe viper and swallows it completely.

Nonvenomous snakes of Armenia

14 out of 18 nonvenomous snakes of Armenia belong to the family of colubrids. However, people often confuse grass snake with the legless lizard. We need to remember, that the grass snakes are nonvenomous.

European cat snake (Telescopus fallax)

This is a long snake, with black spots. This snake likes to live in people’s homes, that’s why it is also called a house snake. Nowadays, the very few European cat snakes are left, therefore this species is listed in the Red Book of Armenia.

Dice snake (Natrix tessellata)

This snake mainly feeds on fish and frogs. In the stomach of one of these snakes were found 265 recently swallowed and not yet digested small fish.

It moves by the smell of fish and finds any river, a pond where fish swim. Lays 6-20 eggs.

Montpellier snake (Malpolon monspessulanus)

This snake never attacks. When defending itself or retreating, it hisses furiously and menacingly. Persians called this snake “Zahrumar” or “venomous snake” because they thought that it is very venomous. Montpellier snake has a black color, feeds on lizards, chicks and small snakes, especially the steppe vipers.

Red-bellied racer (Dolichophis schmidti)

Persians call this snake “Shahmar”, which means “Snake King”. They also call it “El-mar” – “wind-snake”, as it moves and disappears very quickly. Red-bellied racer is the largest snake in Europe, its length reaches 2,5 meters. This snake lays 7-8 big eggs, up to 5 cm. The color is diverse, usually not very bright, with the dominance of gray-brown shades.

This snake is very agile, pugnacious and fearless. With a high head and a sharp hiss, it attacks and bites. But the bite does no harm, as it is a nonvenomous snake. In pursuit, if the snake doesn’t find shelter, it turns, jumps on a man and bites him. The red-bellied racer is not slow and indifferent like a blunt-nosed viper, but very agile and restless.

This snake is not found in the forests. It can be found in rocky terrain and ruins. Because of its beauty, fearlessness, and flexibility, the people called it “King of snakes”, which was reflected in ancient tales and legends.

In this article, we got acquainted with the general characteristics of snakes, as well as snakes found in Armenia. In the next article, we will talk about venomous snakes, how to avoid them and how to perform the first aid if necessary.

Materials of Spartak Hovhannisyan were used for this article

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