There has always been a common saying among the people: "A snake that eats an eel will either die or become disabled." It means that if a snake catches an eel and eats it, it is simply out of its imagination, and it is likely to be "killed" by the eel. It is also used as a metaphor for a certain person. People who overestimate their capabilities do things that are simply impossible to accomplish. Monopterus eel can be seen everywhere. It is a fish that looks similar to a snake. There is nothing scary about it at all. How can it deal with powerful snakes?
How powerful are snakes ?
Snakes are chosen as the most feared animals by humans. Hundreds of thousands of people are bitten by snakes every year, and tens of thousands of people die due to snakes. It can be said that people are afraid of snakes. Engraved in my bones. Just how powerful are snakes? At present, there are more than 3,400 species of snakes found in the world, the largest of which are pythons. They can grow up to seven or eight meters long and are thicker than the mouth of a bowl. Even today, pythons swallowing people occasionally happen. Their whole bodies are full of muscles. They can even strangle a cow when they go all out. Once they are entangled, it is difficult to escape. Among snakes, there are also highly venomous snakes such as bungara and king cobra. Their venom is enough to kill an adult, and almost no animal can resist it. Snakes have always been at the top of the food chain. The natural enemies of snakes are probably eagles, cats and other agility animals. The eel has no arms, legs or fangs. What on earth does it have that can subdue snakes? What about means?
What are the secret weapons of the eel?
The eel is also called eel, field eel, and scaleless young man. It is a bony fish of the family Synbranchidae. Its appearance is similar to that of a snake, with a long and slender body, a slightly flat head, and a pointed tail. Its body length can generally reach 50-70 centimeters, and its longest length can exceed 1 meter. The eel's body is smooth and scaleless, and there is mucus on its surface, which helps it move freely under the water. They are bottom-dwelling fish in rivers and are extremely adaptable to the environment. They like to live in rivers with lush aquatic plants and thick silt. They are also found in rice fields, ponds, and ditches in various places. The main food of the eel is frogs, tadpoles and some smaller fish. It is relatively gluttonous and usually eats a huge amount of food. However, in the cold winter, it can go without eating for a long time, just like hibernating. Monopterus eels can also produce "sex reversal" during reproduction, which means they can lay eggs and be fertilized, which is very miraculous.
Can eels really deal with snakes?
The appearance of eels and snakes can be said to be very similar. There are many examples of eels being mistaken for snakes in the wild. Fortunately, eels do not hurt people and they are not capable of causing fatal harm to humans. weapons. Although they look similar, their hunting methods are completely different. If they meet in the wild, what kind of competition will they have? In fact, people think that eels can deal with snakes mainly from two aspects.
First of all, the eel hardens immediately after death. After death, the body of the eel will soon become extremely hard. When a snake that is about the same size as an eel eats an eel, the hardened eel will stretch its body. At this time, the snake's body will become unable to bend, making it prone to accidents.
The second point is because of the characteristic of eels drilling holes when they see them. Monopterus eels are cave-dwelling creatures. They usually dig a cave about three times their body length by the pond. They also like to drill into narrow places, and they have the aura of never looking back until they hit the south wall. When the snake eats the eel, the eel will make a fuss in the snake's belly like Sun Wukong . Monopterus eels are carnivorous fish and they are very powerful. When the eels are frightened and run around, they are likely to burrow the snake to death and eventually die together.
So do the above two statements make sense? In fact, eels really don't have that much ability.
Snakes are not afraid of eels.
Snakes are not afraid of eels. Snakes will actually prey on eels, but they are not willing to provoke eels unless they have to. This is mainly because eels are not defenseless, and some of their characteristics can cause a lot of trouble to snakes. The mucus on the eel can effectively resist the killing of non-venomous snakes.The hunting method of non-venomous snake is mainly to strangle its prey with its strong body, just like a python. However, eels are slippery all over, and non-venomous snakes cannot effectively entangle them. Therefore, only venomous snakes will hunt eels, and they are considered one of the main natural enemies of eels.
The venomous snake only needs one attack when preying on the eel. Many snakes living by the water like to prey on eels. They inject venom into the eels and then wait quietly for them to die from the poison. Snakes will not swallow live eels, so there is no danger of being broken by the eels from the inside, so this statement is unreasonable.
Snakes have very powerful digestive abilities. Snakes rely on swallowing to eat. They do not have sharp teeth used to tear apart prey, so snakes have evolved very powerful digestive juices. Before the eel becomes hard, the snake can already digest it completely and will not worry about the eel becoming hard. So does the eel have a chance to kill the snake? In fact, it is possible. Monopterus eels are not small in size. They have the ability to hunt some small snakes, but when faced with snakes of the same size or larger, eels have no choice but to escape.
Whether it is snakes or eels, they actually follow the basic rule of "the weak eats the strong". The big snake eats the eel, and the eel eats the small snake. The two are not natural enemies. Therefore, there is no scientific reason for saying that the snake eats the eel and will not die but will be disabled.
