
This year’s Lunar New Year celebrations are ushering in the Year of the Snake—fang-tastic news since the Zoo is home to an especially wide variety of vipers, boas, pythons, and more. For a sneak preview of the snakes you’ll see in the Zoo’s LAIR, as well as some fun facts, check out the photos in our gallery. These reptiles are nothing to hiss at!
Vipers
Vipers are venomous snakes known for their fangs. The animals’ long fangs are hollow, and when they’re not in use, they fold back into the snake’s mouth, ready to spring out filled with venom. The Zoo has many species of vipers, including both pit vipers like rattlesnakes and Old World vipers like the Gaboon.
Gaboon Viper

Saharan Horned Viper

Armenian Viper

European Long-nosed Viper

Mangrove Viper

Mangshan Viper

Temple Viper

South American Bushmaster

Mexican West Coast Rattlesnake

Red Diamond Rattlesnake

Santa Catalina Island Rattlesnake

Pythons
Instead of venom, pythons use their size and strength to cut off blood flow to a quarry’s vital organs, dispatching the prey more quickly than by using suffocation alone. They squeeze the breath out of their catch, then swallow it whole, usually headfirst. In the Zoo’s LAIR, you’ll find two types of pythons: the green tree python and the rough-scaled python.
Green Tree Python

Rough-scaled Python

More Scaled Superstars
West African Green Mamba

Rosy Boa
