Sidewinder
| Class: Reptilia:
Reptiles |
Diet: Small mammals |
| Order:
Squamata: Lizards and Snakes |
| Size: body:43
- 82 cm ( 17 - 32 1/4 in) |
| Family: Crotalidae:
Pit Vipers |
Conservation Status:
Non-threatened |
| Scientific Name:
Crotalus cerastes |
Habitat: desert,
rocky hillsides |
| Range:
Southwestern U.S.A.: Southern California, Nevada and Utah, south to Mexico |
 A
small agile snake, the sidewinder has a distinctive hornlike projection
over each eye. It is chiefly nocturnal and takes refuge in the burrow of
another animal or under a bush during the day. At night it emerges to hunt
its prey, mainly small rodents, such as pocket mice and kangaroo rats,
and lizards. A desert inhabitant, this snake moves with a sideways motion,
known as sidewinding, thought to be the most efficient mode of movement
for a snake on sand. It throws its body into lateral waves, only two short
sections of it touching the ground. All the snake's weight, therefore,
is pushing against the ground at these points, and this provides the leverage
to move it sideways. As it travels, the snake leaves a trail of parallel
J-shaped markings. An ideal form of movement in open, sparsely vegetated
country, sidewinding has the advantage of reducing contact between the
snake's body and the hot sand. Sidewinders mate in April or May, and the
female gives birth to 5 to 18 live young about 3 months later.
  
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