Intelligence in snakes?

[CosmicOwl]

I have three snakes in possession. My two corn snakes seem to be behave in predictable snake fashion. They appear to react to situations rather than acting with intent. If you move around in front of their enclosure, they come out and get ready for food. If you put something in front of them while they are in feeding mode, they strike it. They tend to wander around the cage as it they aren't quite sure where the boundaries lie. It appears to be very instinct driven behavior.

On the other hand, my grey rat snake behaves in a way that appears to have something more going on. With the exception of occasional flight responses, he behaves in a seemingly planned manner. He's knows where all of his hides are and wastes no time trying to find. He also clearly favors some of them. He spends most of his times in his tea box, with his head poked out... watching.

That is another interesting factor: his attentiveness. Other snakes will follow movement, but he watches. He watches my other snakes. He watches me. I've even caught him watching the movements on TV a few times. I know I'm anthropomorphizing a bit, but when he watches something, it genuinely feels like he's studying it. And this carries over to feeding time. He's a cautious feeder. He rarely ever just strikes at a prey item. He has to investigate and decide whether or not it is an acceptable meal. Sometimes this can take quite a while.

Two weeks ago, I offered him a mouse. He was interested in it, but non committal. So I put the mouse in his tank and left him to his own devices. For at least 5 minutes, he circled the mouse and investigated it from every angle. I put it up in a branch, and he used that to his advantage. He tasted from underneath, above, back and front before eventually deciding he didn't want it. So I grabbed the mouse and offered it to my corn snake who took it in less than a second.

I'm telling this story because I believe it's an example of intelligence in snakes. He seems to do things with a purpose, rather than simply reacting. I'm not saying that most or even many snakes are like this, but is it possible that a fair amount are? Is it possible, that just like differences in personalities between snakes, there are differences in intelligence? And If your were to look for examples of intelligence in snakes, what would they be?

[Jim Smith]

I do believe that some snakes are more intelligent than others, mainly by species (i.e. King cobras always seem to be watching and trying to figure stuff out). That said, I have one Honduran Milk Snake that has always seemed more "intentional" in his responses to his environment. When he was small and in an aquarium, I would find him watching me intently through the glass and he follows movement more readily than my other snakes. Is he more intelligent or just more curious??? I don't know for sure, but is personality is very different than the others and as such, he has become my favorite. On another note, it seems to me that practically all species of lizards "appear" to be more intelligent to me than do snakes. Just my impressions...

[millertime89]

There definitely seems to be differing levels of intelligence in some species. Most hots and elapids (cobras) especially seem to be extremely intelligent. Retics and other high-metabolism species seem to be next in line with low-metabolism species being towards the bottom. This seems to be common in most things, not just snakes. There are always exceptions to this rule however.

[Stewjoe]

Some snakes are quite intelligent, others not so much. For example; my Womas seem clueless as to what's going on around them and the only stimulation they react to is the smell of food. My Carpets on the other hand are always aware of their surroundings and will all watch me carefully when I'm in the room. Some come up to the glass looking for food, some will plan their escape route but will just try and wait until I leave and others, usually youngsters will go straight for their favorite hide.

[drumcrush]

My garter is always interested in my hand. I will put it in her enclosure, and come for it but not the same way as she would food. She knows the difference between food and my hand. She will come up to it and smell it, gradually working her way around it and then start climbing up it. It's like she knows of my presence, that I'm neither food or a predator.

[Obsidian_Dragon]

My kingsnake is a dummy, but I love him that way.

My garter snake, on the other hand...if not more intelligent, she's definitely more visually oriented and interactive that way.

[drumcrush]

My kingsnake is a dummy, but I love him that way.

My garter snake, on the other hand...if not more intelligent, she's definitely more visually oriented and interactive that way.

I've read that garters are able to recognize land marks.

[millertime89]

I've read that garters are able to recognize land marks.

To an extent that may be true but if you're talking about when they den up for the winter they most likely just follow the scent.

[Charis]

We keep 13 species and I'd definitely say that some of them seem "smarter" than others, as a species, or at least more alert, aware or curious. Most of those also tend to be the ones more prone to biting people too, part of what makes them interesting to keep!

[Jim Smith]

While I may be completely wrong about this, if you based snake intelligence on how intelligent the snake ooks then I'm afraid that sand boas would end up at the bottom of the list. They may be great snakes to own, but with their eyes perched way up on top of their head (no doubt so they can remain buried with only their eyes exposed) they don't look very intelligent to me. Cute maybe, but not intelligent;) I'm just saying...

[CosmicOwl]

I wonder, do you guys think there is any correlation between how easily a snake can locate the head of a prey item and their intelligence? I know it's a small sample size, but I see a fair amount of difference between my grey rat and my blood red corn snake(who are the same age). I think I've only once seen my grey rat snake strike or eat a mouse from the butt. He almost always bites the head and has a very easy time eating. If he happens to grab the mouse from the middle, he's very quick to correct himself and get his jaws around the mouse's muzzle.

On the other hand, my bloodred corn snake is a mess. Despite my attempts to position the mouse so that she gets a clean strike on the head, she bites whatever part she feels like. Sometimes she'll strike a mouse, only to let go of it and then spend several minutes trying to relocate the mouse's head. She's even taken quite a few mice backwards for what seems like no reason at all. If a prey item is of reasonable size, it's difficult to eat backwards and probably takes two to three times as long. For whatever reason, she requires considerably more time that my grey rat snake to solve a fairly simple problem.

[Doug 351]

I wonder, do you guys think there is any correlation between how easily a snake can locate the head of a prey item and their intelligence? I know it's a small sample size, but I see a fair amount of difference between my grey rat and my blood red corn snake(who are the same age). I think I've only once seen my grey rat snake strike or eat a mouse from the butt. He almost always bites the head and has a very easy time eating. If he happens to grab the mouse from the middle, he's very quick to correct himself and get his jaws around the mouse's muzzle.

On the other hand, my bloodred corn snake is a mess. Despite my attempts to position the mouse so that she gets a clean strike on the head, she bites whatever part she feels like. Sometimes she'll strike a mouse, only to let go of it and then spend several minutes trying to relocate the mouse's head. She's even taken quite a few mice backwards for what seems like no reason at all. If a prey item is of reasonable size, it's difficult to eat backwards and probably takes two to three times as long. For whatever reason, she requires considerably more time that my grey rat snake to solve a fairly simple problem.

This is probably where I can make one of my strongest arguments that some snakes possess a fairly high degree of intelligence. ....My Texas rat snake spent half her life eating live mice....and started out spoiled....eating much smaller size mice than she was capable of eating.......

She did the same thing. ....grab them wherever. ...and just swallow them.....but once I upped the size of the prey....she changed her ways.....she figured out grabbing the big boys by the but.....not only made it harder to swallow. ....but left them free to bite back. .....

So very quickly. ....she started grabbing them by the nose.....and constricting them.....

So....to my way of thinking. ...this is somewhat of a learned behaviour. ....which definitely requires intelligence. .....

The other thing is the time I was teasing the crap out of her.....and she bit me......she just clamped down so gently that it didn't even break the skin...but it was her way of telling me to back off.....she has also short-striked a few times while we we playing around. .....again. ...I was picking on her.....IIRC....tying her in knots.....besides that. ...there is only one thing that can set her off....and that is to take your index finger. ..draw it back in a strike pose....and then thrust it at her.....

That's where her sense of humor. ...her patience. ...calm demeanor. ....and bonding go out the window. .......Play time over!!!!!!

[FluffyGerbil]

I totally agree with everything saying that different snakes have different intelligence levels, almost like dogs I suppose. Of course this may just have to do with general personality of the breed. Some are more curious and like to go places, others live out their life in the dirt. I think, just like puppies or any other animal, snakes learn from what they see around them. I know it seems that way with all the snakes I've owned.

They obviously learn to trust or distrust things from experience. I've noticed that snakes (that are well kept) typically "behave" better for their normal handlers than for some little kid they've never encountered. And it does look like a snake can get interested when an owner walks by, because they know that owners may get it out from the enclosure...like a dog wanting to go for a walk.

Snakes aren't terribly clever, in my opinion, but they can definitely think for themselves.

[Obsidian_Dragon]

I wonder, do you guys think there is any correlation between how easily a snake can locate the head of a prey item and their intelligence?

If there is, then that says a lot about my king, who eats his mice butt first nearly every damn time. Of course, this is the same snake who was giving himself dents in his scales from wedging his fat butt on the lip right under the lid, so I've never considered him terribly bright. Precious, but not bright.

It's harder to judge my garter, because she's still incredibly flighty and shy, and tends to eat her (halved) pinkies from a plate after I've covered her home. She does like to make blood smear art...

[sharthun]

Lol my mbk eats butt first about half the time.



If there is, then that says a lot about my king, who eats his mice butt first nearly every damn time. Of course, this is the same snake who was giving himself dents in his scales from wedging his fat butt on the lip right under the lid, so I've never considered him terribly bright. Precious, but not bright.

It's harder to judge my garter, because she's still incredibly flighty and shy, and tends to eat her (halved) pinkies from a plate after I've covered her home. She does like to make blood smear art...

[reptiletalk]

i own a ball python and a boa bcc......My boa is very curious whenever i pass in front of the terrarium. My ball python is curious but at the same time defensive but only until i touch him, then is all god. I don't know if curiosity correlates to intelligence. Now about the feeding part there are not many differences. It takes 8-10 minutes for the rat to vanish. Also during feeding i realized a change. My ball now just waits for her rat and then she starts eating when at the beginning she was storming at it. My boa was always like that (i read that lot of boas do this).

[Mad Max]

My boa is only 3 months old, but he must be one of the most "special" animals on the planet. Yesterday, during feeding time, he bit the carpet substrate in his cage before I even put the mouse in there and he only let go after unsuccessfully trying to constrict the ground for about five seconds. He routinely gets choked by his own tail (it likes to wrap around whatever it touches) and instead of just uncoiling it, he uses most of his strength fighting to pull his head out of the noose. I'd worry about him strangling himself to death while I'm not at home, but I figure he'd probably just pass out before it happened.

[PsychoSnake]

I only have two species of snakes in my home -- three rosy boas and one sand boa. However of the four, my Daisy (normal coastal rosy boa), sticks out. Not only is she extremely docile, she seems to be very intelligent.

I got her as an adult and she had been on a diet of live mice her whole life. I kept her on live while she first got settled in. She was a good huntress. She was very methodical and sneaky about her attack. Then I switched her to F/T. After two feedings of F/T it appears as though she figured out that the mice were already dead. Now I just dangle the mouse in her cage and she GENTLY takes it straight into her mouth and eats -- no striking or constricting! No one has ever been bitten by her. She seems to know the difference between hands and mice and doesn't require feeding in a separate tub. I can pet her chin and never fear of getting bitten.

She seems to think a lot about what she does and is a big hit with everyone she meets. She has gotten some folks who were afraid of snakes to appreciate them better. People seem to really connect with her.

I get feeding response bites from the others. When they're hungry, they're hungry! :)