Title, what’s the machanism that a snake uses to move?
In: Biology
Several different ways depending on the snake, but generally speaking they push off against the ground and objects to drive themselves forward. The scales on their belly slide forward easily but have high friction when being pushed backwards or sideways, so they can push part of their body forward over the ground while pushing against the ground with other parts of their body. Snakes also often lift part of their body off the ground while moving.
There are four basic types of snake movement. The standard serpentine form has the snake moving in a squiggly line. The snake basically makes waves with its body that move backwards along the snake. Through ground friction and pushing off objects, these waves push the snake forward as they move backward. Rectilinear/caterpillar movement has the snake traveling with its body laid out straight rather than wiggling side to side. The snake lifts its body off the ground in small waves and scooches the bits in the air forward before setting them down again. In concertina mode, the snake anchors the front half of its body and drags the back half forward, then anchors the back half and pushes the front half forward. And sidewinders lift up loops of their body and move them through the air to set them on the ground to the side, then repeat with other sections.
Oh, and of course many snakes swim or burrow and there are snakes that can glide too
Link with some diagrams and an attenbourough video further down the page
https://snake-facts.weebly.com/how-do-snakes-move.html
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