Following close on the heels of his Lizards of the World Mark O'Shea has authored an authoritative work on the snakes of the world. Myriad they are, diverse in size, colour and habitat, venomous or benign, yet almost universally in need of a good PR campaign to improve their image. O'Shea goes a long way towards doing this.
The book follows the format used in several recent Princeton works and there is a comforting familiarity in the organization of it all. The result is a systematic, scholarly work, filled with full colour illustrations of the highest quality, lending visual appeal for even the most casual observer - no less for the serious reader. The text and the images complement each other perfectly.
The Introduction eases us gently into "what makes a snake a snake," followed by an exploration of the evolution and origins of snakes. Taxonomy, that most fluid of sciences, is covered in detail, with a superb clade on page eleven concisely portraying the family tree of snakes.
Internal anatomy is covered in detail, followed by an examination of snake skin and scales, a particularly fascinating section for those who have wondered about snake locomotion and how it is achieved, or have had the good fortune to find a shed skin on a morning walk. It is interesting that Great Crested Flycatchers eagerly seek snake skins for their nests. No one is quite sure of its function, but it's possible it may have some totemic significance.
It is the flicking tongue of a snake that seems ominous to some observers, and there are countless references to speaking with a forked tongue and other nefarious associations, but as you will learn the sense organs of a snake are well developed and sophisticated.
Snakes exist in a wide variety of environments and have coping mechanisms for the climate and topography they inhabit. A Sidewinder in the desert will move quite differently from the Garter Snake emerging from a hibernaculum, and their method of locomotion is distinct. Sea snakes move in different ways entirely.
Snakes are both oviparous and viviparous - the book has a complete section on reproduction.
All snakes are carnivorous and the ways in which they find, subdue and consume prey varies greatly, from small snakes that eagerly seek out worms to giant constrictors. The latter "...have, on rare occasions, accomplished the unthinkable: they have ambushed, killed and swallowed a human being whole."
The defence mechanisms employed by snakes vary greatly with species, but even the most venomous species are not free from predators, the most lethal, of course, being the two-legged stalker known as Homo sapiens.
An important section is devoted to conservation, an issue all too pressing in the 21st century. Even if you cannot bring yourself to love snakes, remember that preserving habitat for one species preserves habitat for all. Snakes are equal partners in a healthy, functioning ecosystem.
The bulk of the book is devoted to snake infraorders and superfamilies, with pictures, a range map and text for several representatives of the various taxa.
This book is a veritable tour de force. I don't expect that it will win the hearts and minds of every reader, but at least you will understand snakes better, and the next time someone refers to a snake in the grass you will know that's not necessarily a bad thing!
Snakes of the World: A Guide to Every Family - Princeton University Press
Mark O'Shea
Hardcover - US$29.95 - ISBN: 9780691240664
240 pages - 6.75 x 9.5 inches (16.875 x 23.75 cm)
282 Colour plus 7 black-and-white illustrations - 53 maps
Publication Date: 07 March, 2023
