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Blind or blindfolded rattlesnakes can strike prey accurately in the complete absence of visible light, [13] [14] though it does not appear that they assess prey animals based on their body temperature. [15] In addition, snakes may deliberately choose ambush sites that facilitate infrared detection of prey.
Thermographic image: a cold-blooded snake is shown eating a warm-blooded mouse. Warm-blooded is an informal term referring to animal species whose bodies maintain a temperature higher than that of their environment. In particular, homeothermic species (including birds and mammals) maintain a stable body temperature by regulating metabolic processes
Snakes are cold-blooded, meaning they cannot regulate their own body temperatures like humans or other warm-blooded animals. A snake’s body temperature changes with the outside temperatures.
The snakes' face has a pair of holes, or pits, lined with temperature sensors. The sensors indirectly detect infrared radiation by its heating effect on the skin inside the pit. They can work out which part of the pit is hottest, and therefore the direction of the heat source, which could be a warm-blooded prey animal.
Endotherms control body temperature by internal homeostatic mechanisms. In mammals, two separate homeostatic mechanisms are involved in thermoregulation—one mechanism increases body temperature, while the other decreases it. The presence of two separate mechanisms provides a very high degree of control.
Normal body temperature is around 37°C (98.6°F), and hypothermia sets in when the core body temperature gets lower than 35 °C (95 °F). [2] Usually caused by prolonged exposure to cold temperatures, hypothermia is usually treated by methods that attempt to raise the body temperature back to a normal range. [3]
Homeothermy, homothermy or homoiothermy [1] is thermoregulation that maintains a stable internal body temperature regardless of external influence. This internal body temperature is often, though not necessarily, higher than the immediate environment [ 2 ] (from Greek ὅμοιος homoios "similar" and θέρμη thermē "heat").
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