They observed that the snake “performs active cartwheeling by repeatedly launching the coils of its body into the air and rolling down inclines,” according to a news release. Quah, who had seen the “surprising” behavior in a dwarf reed snake before, was thrilled that his team had recording equipment on hand. The snake was captured and placed on a flat area along the side of the road where it repeated the cartwheeling behavior several times,” researchers wrote in the paper. “By cartwheeling down an incline, the snake was able to gain speed and rapidly cover more ground. “As cartwheeling appears to be very metabolically taxing, the snakes cannot sustain it for long periods of time, and it usually lasts only a few seconds,” corresponding author Evan Seng Huat Quah, of Universiti Malaysia Sabah, told CNN in an email. Research on flying snakes has revealed a new understanding of how they move through the air Jake Sochaįlying snakes? Here's how they can glide through the air
Biotropica, published online Apdoi: 10.1111/btp.Malaysia. Observations and description of a rare escape mechanism in a snake: Cartwheeling in Pseudorabdion longiceps (Cantor, 1847) (Squamata, Colubridea). The team’s paper appears today in the journal Biotropica.Įvan Seng Huat Quah et al. “We believe that this behavior may be more widespread in other small snake species, especially members of the subfamily Calamariinae, but the lack of records is probably an artifact of the challenges in detecting and observing these secretive species.” “We were excited when we successfully captured images that documented cartwheeling behavior in this species,” Dr. In addition to identifying a complex defense mechanism used by the dwarf reed snake, the authors also provide insights into the kinetic abilities of snakes. “Some snakes also use passive rolling, but we observed that the dwarf reed snake performs active cartwheeling by repeatedly launching the coils of its body into the air and rolling down inclines.” Evan Seng Huat Quah, a researcher at the Universiti Malaysia Sabah, and colleagues. “Typical defense mechanisms that small snakes use against predators include fleeing, camouflage, coloration, odors, death-feigning, and intimidation,” said lead author Dr. Individuals of this species have been observed a number of times to cartwheel in an attempt to evade capture, particularly if they are placed on a smooth substrate. Some specimens may have a pale yellow collar at the back of the head.
Its color varies from black, brown to reddish-brown and it is iridescent in strong sunlight or camera flash. It ranges from southern Thailand, Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore to the islands of Borneo, Sumatra and Sulawesi. One of the smallest reed snakes, it inhabits mainly forested areas hiding under logs, rocks or leaf litter. The dwarf reed snake is a nocturnal snake species in the subfamily Calamariinae of the family Colubridae. Cartwheeling behavior of the dwarf reed snake ( Pseudorabdion longiceps).
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