Your email address will not be published. Live Science is part of Future US Inc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. After a snake sticks its tongue in the air, the tongue is retracted through the lip notch and into the mouth. My dad jumped up and I (quick to follow him) went outside to find it. The longer the forks of the tongue of the snake or lizard, the more it uses its sense of smell-tasting. It's pretty obvious that them snakes really like some menstrual blood! So yes snakes can taste their food in a manner of speaking but it's not touch taste like humans do when food is placed on the tongue. I’m not so sure about this. Question is pretty simple I am wondering if my snake can smell my period as blood while he is being handled and I am wondering if he will strike me associating the smell of blood with prey? But I think I need to dangle some bloody tampons in shark infested waters…for science), if dogs were attracted to the smell of menstruation (I’ve been looking and looking for studies, but apparently that hasn’t been done either), all sorts of things. It might just be, however, that they are a little less well-behaved than the ladies…. What an odd little study, although very interesting. Also, does a pad or tampon make a difference? "By the time it picks up the chemicals and transfers them, [the brain] has a fraction of a second to interpret them.". In 1920, scientists proposed that snakes inserted each of the two "tines" of their forked tongue into each of the two holes at the roof of the mouth. I immediately smelled it. Small sample size, but I’d hope with an excuse that consistent, the information comes from somewhere. Snakes and lizards have forked tongues, some more extreme than others. The blood samples taken from him were reportedly pitch black. But there is this threat…ladies, this snake likes your menstrual blood. I happen to loathe when people put all their data in tables, so I’m going to graph this for you. But we don't know if it's human blood, or menstrual blood specifically. Thank you. The bulb-like vomeronasal organs are located above the roof of the mouth and open into the mouth through a pair of tiny holes in the palate. 6. thanks! They measured how often the snakes flicked their tongues at the tampons (evidence that they were chemosensing), and advanced toward the tampons. Most snakes have an excellent sense of smell, in part to make up for their poor eyesight and limited hearing. Now scientists know that's not the case, Schwenk said; even so, the odor molecules somehow get transferred to those holes. When I was small, my brother came in from playing outside - pale as a sheet of paper and stuttering that he saw a snake. Attached is a classic article in Physiological Psychology demonstrating that snakes may detect certain steroids. So I have to think that, until there are studies proving otherwise, most other mammals, and hopefully sharks, don’t really care if you’re seeping a little bit of endometrium from your nether regions. Can snakes smell period blood? Banned in 160 Nations, Why is Ractopamine in U.S. Pork? So if forced to choose between the cold bloody tampon in the trash and the warm delicious baby…well let’s just say I don’t think the snake cares about the tampon in comparison. I’m a little skeptical of the logic of this train of thought, but that’s how they told it. Asked by Howell Green. Because apparently all of these babies had menstruating mothers who kept their used tampons in the trash in the baby’s room? (Op-Ed), Catch the full moon (and a penumbral eclipse) on Monday, Megalodon nurseries reveal world’s largest shark had a soft side, 20 of the worst epidemics and pandemics in history, Medieval soldier found with sword and knives at the bottom of a Lithuanian lake. I will say that I lived on Andersen AFB, and they were very active in controlling their numbers. But there IS one species, apparently that DOES care. Snakes do their best sniffing, not with their conventional nose (though they do smell through their nostrils, too), but with a pair of organs on the roof of their mouths called the Jacobson's or vomeronasal organ. That doesn't give dinner much time to get away. When it is especially hot out, they can be quite active at night. The authors inferred that the snakes were attempting to eat the babies (mmmm, delicious babies), and wanted to know why. But the moral of the story is that, if there’s any animal out there that likes your used tampons, it’s the brown tree snake. And their tongues are specially adapted to stay on the trail of that "interesting" odor. But we don't know if it's human blood, or menstrual blood specifically. HOW SHARKS SMELL BLOOD IS FAR MORE INTERESTING than their mythical ability to detect the scent of “a drop of blood miles away.”Scientists disproved that legend long ago, although you may still find it in cheesy movies and on shark-week type reality shows. Be the first to answer! DeAnna. Receive news and offers from our other brands? I think scent is much more important and your snake was probably hit in the face with the wafted smell of guts and this is … "The idea is that they smell something [with their nose], and if it's interesting to them that will trigger tongue-flicking behavior.". To smell through their mouths, snakes rely on tongue-flicking. They do get vague though when you ask if the dogs can tell the difference between menstrual blood and blood from wounds. I hope the bird populations are returning…it’s been 10 years since I’ve been there…because that’s been the biggest problem with the introduction of the brown tree snake. Snakes not only have chemosensing, they can sense HEAT. Friday Weird Science: Does your menstrual blood attract BEARS?! Years ago I worked in the Arctic and occasionally we would have women scientists and staff. The nares, or nostrils, are clearly visible on the snout’s underside on this great white photographed in South Africa. Friday Weird Science: Millipedes "talking" dirty. They also have powerful stink secretions that can't be washed off. Snakes not only have chemosensing, they can sense HEAT. (of which I own three, another dog died a few years ago). The authors concluded that human blood (in this case menstrual blood) attracts brown tree snakes. But if they're close enough, they do have very sensitive organs that can detect the heat retained in a smear of blood, or pool of blood in a river. Thank you for signing up to Live Science. The authors concluded that human blood (in this case menstrual blood) attracts brown tree snakes. They also talked about not leaving your post-partum blood and menstrual blood around your baby, as it might be unduly attractive to snakes. The authors concluded that human blood (in this case menstrual blood) attracts brown tree snakes. Stay up to date on the coronavirus outbreak by signing up to our newsletter today. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. It’s pretty obvious that them snakes really like some menstrual blood! From the descriptions of the brown tree snake, I’m now getting the terrifying idea of a bigass snake that will cut the power, sneak up on you through the trees, and DROP ON YOUR HEAD FROM ABOVE AND ENVENOM YOU TO DEATH. Snakes not only have chemosensing, they can sense HEAT. I saw this in the movie "Anaconda" with Jennifer Lopez, and since the ways the Anacondas are portrayed are incorrect, I've been wondering if this is also false: Anacondas are attracted to the smell of blood. and ANY animal can smell this and will act aggressively as a response to the smell In humans, oxygenated blood is bright red and deoxygenated blood is dark red or maroon. In lizards and snakes, these organs open only into the mouth and are separated completely from the nasal cavity. SCIENCE 101: Cranial Nerve II: The Optic Nerve, Part 2. And when they flick their tongues, each of the pair of tines on the "fork" picks up odor chemicals either from the air or the ground, said Schwenk, who has been studying snakes for decades. "That means the only way the [odor] molecules can get to them is through the mouth," he said. So, here are 10 facts about how a snake can smell: 1. And then they got their results. Can amphetamine and caffeine make you a slacker? However, anacondas do not technically smell blood. “Response of brown tree snakes (Boiga irregularis) to human blood” Journal of Chemical Ecology, 1993. When snakes retract the tongue back into their mouths, those odor molecules somehow make their way into the vomeronasal organs, or a "nose within a nose," according to Schwenk. Future US, Inc. 11 West 42nd Street, 15th Floor, The female dogs (n=2) don’t care whether I am menstruating or not (I use tampons), and they ignore tampons left in the trash. . But we’re all still HERE. 0 0 1. After last week’s post on whether the bears can smell the menstruation (hehe, I can’t get over that quote), I was inundated with questions and tips for papers. I actually lived in Guam, where I am happy to report that I never once ran into a brown tree snake, nor did I find tampons missing from my trash. While I don’t have any experience with snakes and their intentions towards my menstrual blood, I do have anecdotal evidence for dogs…. In order to prove that, we’d need more tampons, this time with regular blood (apparently none of the authors were willing to make that particular sacrifice for this paper). They had to tell the base security if when they were menstruating and the Polar Bears scould smell it miles away and would come over to the camp. Animals may have red, blue, green, yellow, orange, violet, or colorless blood. Doesn’t the Book of Genesis cover the eternal enmity of woman and snake? 4 years ago . its how they tell if the females are ready to breed. New York, First, let me point out that often when we refer to the word, “smell,” we refer to the nose and nostrils. Answer Save. It's pretty obvious that them snakes really like some menstrual blood! "If there's a way that those two tips [tines] don't get mixed and get delivered to separate holes and separate vomeronasal organs, then [the snake] can say the chemical is stronger on the right," for instance, sort of like a stereo smell that helps the predator stay on the trail of a prey, Schwenk told Live Science.