From ancient times the snake is one of the oldest mythical characters and is revered by civilizations around the world. It is credited with a variety of images, both positive and negative.
Today, there are about 3,458 species of snakes on Earth, ranging from the semi-frozen tundra of northern Canada to the humid tropical jungles of the equator and much of the world's oceans. Snakes are highly specialized predators. They play a very important role in the balance of any ecosystem.
Snakes come in a variety of sizes - from pythons and boas that can reach from 10 m to very small, which can fit on a coin with a diameter of 24.26 mm. Also, snakes have a variety of colors. The world's largest non-venomous snake - green anaconda (Eunectes murinus).
The purpose of World Snake Day is to help people learn more about these reptiles and what an important role these animals play in ecosystems.
The general collection of snakes of Mykolaiv Zoo includes 19 species. And 11 of them are pythons and boas, and colubrid snakes - 8 species. The oldest and longest snake in our zoo is African rock python (Python sebae), whose name is Lavrentiy, he is 3 meters long. He was born in 1996 and came to Mykolaiv Zoo in 1999 from Holland as a gift. Lavrentiy is kept on exhibit in the primate department. This African rock python is considered one of the most aggressive snakes in Africa. Aquaterrarium workers are proud to have found common ground with this reptile during all these long years of work.
Over the last year, the zoo collection of snakes has been replenished with the following species: beauty rat snake (Orthriophis taeniurus), Pueblan milk snake (Lampropeltis triangulum campbelli). These species of snakes live in pairs and give offspring not for the first year.
Interestingly, the oldest department of our zoo, from which the story begins, is the Aquaterrarium. Until 1925, when the first zoological department was opened, the zoo was called the State Aquarium.