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Ground squirrels chew up discarded snake skins, applying the scent on themselves and their offspring.
They also also bathe in soil snakes have rested in..
All to mask their own scent avoiding predation from rattlesnakes, who have poor eye sight and rely on their sense of smell
They also also bathe in soil snakes have rested in..
All to mask their own scent avoiding predation from rattlesnakes, who have poor eye sight and rely on their sense of smell
2/
Ground squirrels live in a series of burrows that keep them out of reach of most predators, but snakes have the right body to infiltrate these so masking their scent fools their enemy into believing another snake is resting inside but snakes abilities are further exploited..
Ground squirrels live in a series of burrows that keep them out of reach of most predators, but snakes have the right body to infiltrate these so masking their scent fools their enemy into believing another snake is resting inside but snakes abilities are further exploited..
3/
Rattle snakes detect infrared radiation which allows them to track their prey, these squirrels can heat up their tail, dilating blood vessels and wave it around to intimidate. The tail flagging is used only to caution snakes with heat sensitive organs not just any old snakes
Rattle snakes detect infrared radiation which allows them to track their prey, these squirrels can heat up their tail, dilating blood vessels and wave it around to intimidate. The tail flagging is used only to caution snakes with heat sensitive organs not just any old snakes
I hope you liked the amazing endeavours of the ground squirrel to protect itself and it’s family Humbling, I thought.... here is some more reading as 3 tweets isn’t enough and the full video
http://cutt.ly/LtNBYLB https://cutt.ly/rg3axwU
http://cutt.ly/EtNBSrW
http://cutt.ly/LtNBYLB https://cutt.ly/rg3axwU
http://cutt.ly/EtNBSrW
