Puzzle Description:

A king snake (black) and a rat snake (green) in mortal combat. The rat snake is trying to constrict the king snake, but the king snake was most likely the agressor, as king snakes are known to eat other snakes.

#1: Robyn Broyles (ginkgo100) on Aug 23, 2009 [SPOILER]

Created after a photo from this site: http://www.dpughphoto.com/snakes.htm

Cool concept!

nice...but I hate snakes!

Love it!

Beautiful image - gruesome subject matter, but hey, it's nature, right? Very entertaining puzzle right down to the last pixel! Thanks!

Jane, I was a little reticent to do snake puzzles for that very reason. I know there are people out there who are genuinely phobic about snakes and might actually be upset by such a puzzle. I hope nobody was put off too much. Should we make a creator's-etiquette rule that snakes and spiders should be identified in the title?

No. These aren't real, shouldn't be scary at all, and the surprise should not be ruined by the title or a "warning."

Adam, I may just be letting that Myers-Briggs "F" come out too strongly. As a person (mostly) recovered from a phobia (not to snakes), I know how it can really shake you up to encounter it, especially in an unexpected place that's supposed to be fun, like a puzzle. And since phobias are by definition irrational, the fact that the object is "not real" does not always matter. But unless someone actually COMPLAINS (more than just to say they hate the subject matter), I suppose I will not worry about it!

Personally, I love snakes, though. I can't help but wonder how the battle that was the model for this puzzle turned out... I rather hope that they both escaped each other, but a different result would just be nature taking its course. King snakes eat rat snakes. Rat snakes, as demonstrated, defend themselves. It's what happens.

I love the puzzle! I hate snakes. I'm with Adam on this one. As terrified as I am of snakes (lots of rattlesnakes here), I really enjoyed this puzzle. Great fun.

Thanks for the input, Teresa. This one is, for once, not a family member! Although I did have a pet milk snake at one time. Neither of the snakes in this picture is venomous—or large—so they are harmless to humans. Personally, I think anyone who keeps a dangerous snake is asking for it.

Are you sure they are fighting? Maybe they are mating? :-D

Teresa, not two different species! They aren't even closely related. Also, the rat snake (which is brownish in real life, but I chose vivid green) is actually trying to constrict (squeeze to death) the king snake. See the loops on the right side of the picture?

Yeah, I know, I was just trying to be funny. :-)

For anyone who is interested in viewing the difference between fighting and mating behavior in snakes, take a look at this BBC video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TF7d4jvays

Oh, well, zoology is both my major and my weak spot (one of them)... it's easy to get me going. =) I had an impulse to explain here the fascinating details of snake sex before I thought better of it.

PLEASE do explain, Robyn! I'd love to hear all about snake sex!

You'll have to go to Wikipedia! I think for once I will restrain myself from writing a biology article in the PBN forums. LOL!

Too bad!

ditto #9

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