The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-23

heads. but none of these are venemous.
Their bodies are cylindrical, rather long.
and they have small eyes. Most OF them are
pretty creatures and very rapid swimmers
They live in or near running streams,
and are to be seen slipping sleekly through
the water in search of frogs and small
fishes. Snakes are cold-blooded creatures
and love the sunshine. 1t is evident to the
naturalist that the creatures once had legs.
but the front ones have long since disap-
peared entirely, while the hlnd ones are
merely rudimentary and within the body.
Apparently no two creatures could be more
thoroughly differentiated than snake and
bird. Yet the evidences OF their fossil re-
mains point conclusivelyto common an
cestor for these two widely separated Or
ders of being.
Just what family quarrel separated the
two back in the dark ages, we shall never
know. Something happened IN the course
of evolution that sent the bird skyward.
and gave him coat OF feathers, strong
wings and warm blood, while his near
relative goes upon his belly, loves to bask
on rock in the sunshine in summer and
lies torpid during the winter. They are
separated as widely as the east is from the
west to all appearances, and yet so much
thicker than water, after ALL is blood, even
when that of one individual is hot and that
of the other is cold, that certain anatomical
peculiarities that snakes and birds share
to-day, speak conclusively of their common
ancestry.
How does q snake travel?
Our artists have very taking wav of
portraying the creature as progressi sing in
a series of undulating curves, arehirg and
depressing alternate sections of his back in
graceful illustration of Hogarth's line of
beauty. But the snake does not do anv-
thing of the sort. He catches the forward
part of his body against some projection or
8 h.
sidewise, by alternate contractions OF the
right and left ribs, he drags himself for
ward. His actual organs of locomotion
are his ribs, and he can travel with almost
incredible rapidity. He does not often do
it, however, or for long at time, and he
cannot progress at all over a smooth sur
face.
Just now, when so many of our CITY folk
are camping, it may be useful to know the
characteristics by which poisonous snakes
are to be identified. The corral snake I
have noticed. The other one to be dreaded,
the rattler, has a broad, fiat head, with a
very slender neck-like construction where
it joins the body. The rattler's head like
his rattle, is unmistakable. He is easily
killed. He can only strike when coiled,
and by making him strike at a long stick
or cane a well-directed blow will dispatch
him before he can coil again. He can do
this, however, with almost lightning rapid
ity, so be quick. He can also be crushed
with rock when coiled, and he can only
strike the distance of his own length. He
cannot, no snake can, throw his body for-
ward to any perceptible degree.
The rattles are dried remains of the in
tegument that once covered the tail. The
snake sometimes sheds his skin several
times a year, but the skin of the tail, in
stead of being shed with the rest, is re-
tanned by the posterior swelling of the end
OF the tail and forms joint or rattle. The
number OF rattles, therefore, does not indi-
cate the age of the snake, but merely the
number OF times he has shed his skin.
The old feud is working for the ex-
termination of the rattler, however, and he
is rapidly disappearing before the on
slaughts OF man.