10 Biggest Snakes Ever Captured - 15 Dogs You Should Fear the Most
Snakes live in a wide variety of habitats including forests, swamps, grasslands, deserts and in both fresh and salt water. Some are active at night, others during the day. Snakes are predators and eat a wide variety of animals, including rodents, insects, birds' eggs and young birds.
They are most commonly found in deserts because of the dry heat, which is why Australia is so well known for its variety. But they are also found in forests, tropical locations, prairies and areas with tall grass and bushes.
They most likely originated in the warm, forested ecosystems of the Southern Hemisphere around 128 million years ago. Snakes show incredible diversity, with over 3,400 living species found in a wide range of habitats, such as land, water and in trees.
These long, legless reptiles play an important role in the natural environment and food webs. Effective hunters and ambush predators, snakes use their highly-developed senses of sight, taste, hearing and touch to locate, recognise and track their prey.
It's more than just feeling uncomfortable with barking or being around dogs. Instead, this fear may interfere with daily life and trigger a number of symptoms, like trouble breathing or dizziness. Specific phobias, like cynophobia, affect some 7 to 9 percent of the population.
Sometimes the reason that someone is not warm and fuzzy about animals is because of a bad experience in the past. It may even be a suppressed memory that they cannot pinpoint, but the apprehension remains. Sometimes a fear of animals is “handed-down” from their mom or dad.
New Scientist describes a study that investigated the reactions of dogs to people who either helped or refused to help their owners. The researchers found that the dogs could pick out antisocial behavior and were more likely to socially exclude or react unfavorably toward the perpetrator.
Experts who have studied dogs and their sense of smell have concluded that dogs can't necessarily smell the emotion that is fear. They can, however, detect smells and see movements and body postures that may help them sense when a person is nervous, anxious, or afraid.
