Question

How many bones does a snake have?

Answer 1

Hint: The body of a snake contains a higher number of bones as compared to human beings but it has fewer types of bones consisting mostly of bones like vertebrae, ribs, jawbones, etc. These bones help in the movement and swallowing of the prey.

Complete Answer:
Snakes are a group of creeping animals that belong to the class Reptilia. The number of bones present in a snake lies around 300-400. Even though there are so many bones in a snake, they are still very flexible as all these bones facilitate movement. The skeleton of snakes is made up of vertebrae to which the ribs are connected, along with the skull and jawbone. The ribs are not joined thus allowing for them to open up during ingestion of larger prey. The bones of the skull and jaws are loosely attached together with the help of ligaments which allow the mouth of the snake to open up and ingest its prey.
-The term Reptilia means the organisms who move using creeping or crawling motion.
-This class usually consists of terrestrial animals that have dry skin with epidermal scales on it.
-The general characteristics of this group are that they do not have external ears, instead, they have tympanum as the ear.
-Heart is three-chambered with the exception of crocodiles which have four-chambered hearts.
-Other examples of reptiles include Chelone (Turtle), Crocodilus (Crocodile), Naja (Cobra), Vipera (Viper).

Note:
-The bones of the jaw are so loosely attached that they can move both horizontally as well as vertically.
-The bones of a snake play such a crucial role in its movement that even if one of them breaks, the snake will not be able to move.
-Other internal organs of a snake are also modified such that it has a really long throat and stomach.