Southeastern's Science on Tap presents ‘Why Did the Snake Cross the Road’
Tuesday, November 21, 2017
by: Tonya Lowentritt
HAMMOND – We’ve all heard the question ‘Why did the chicken cross the road?’, but
have you ever wondered why snakes attempt to do so?
This topic is among the many studied by Southeastern Louisiana University Biology
Instructor Cliff Fontenot. Understanding why snakes cross or rather are unable to
cross the road is the topic of Southeastern’s next Science on Tap presentation scheduled
Dec. 5.
Sponsored by the Department of Biological Sciences, the presentation by Fontenot
will be held at 7 p.m. at Tope La Catering, 113 East Thomas St. in Hammond. Titled
“Why did the Snake Cross the Road?” the lecture is free and open to all ages. Doors
open at 6:30 p.m.
Most animals cross roads in search of food, mates, or other resources, Fontenot
said. However, snakes tend to stop on roads to absorb heat, which increases their
chance of being killed by traffic.
“I have been studying snake activity on the section of Highway 51 between Ponchatoula
and LaPlace for over 12 years, and found that more than 70% of the snakes on the road
are dead,” he said. “This amounts to more than 1,000 snakes per year killed by traffic.
So the question is really, ‘Why didn’t the snake make it across the road?’ And if
so many are being killed by vehicles, why are there still so many snakes?”
Surprising answers to these questions, said Fontenot, come from differences in
body size and temperature, how different snakes respond to vehicles, and what snakes
do when it floods.
For information on this or future Science on Tap presentations, contact the Department
of Biological Sciences at 985-549-3740.
