Snakes slither overland using many methods
Snakes have very advanced ways to "walk"
There are six gaits !
- Accordeon like
Used on flat grounds or in tunnels.
This locomotion take advantage of statical friction.
Parts of the body in touch with the substratum make it possible the movement of
other "adjacent" parts, which are pushed or pulled.
The snake seems to fold then unfold successively. While one part of the body folds and creates a contact with the substratum while the other part is pushed or pulled from that contact.
- Rectilinear
Results of waves of contraction passing along the belly from one end to the other.
Boas and vipers can also creep along with their bodies straight by waves of muscular contraction passing along the belly, in the style of the earthworm.
Belly scales set up then sink.
Big snakes like Boas and Anacondas (water boa) can use that method.
Young snakes can even progress on perfectly flat and vertical surfaces like glass especially when they are wet, taking advantage of surface tension.
Reached Speed is about a few centimeters per second.
This is the prefered mean of progression on flat terrains for big snakes when there is no urgency.
- Side-Winding
Used on soft grounds like sand. The maximum speed reached by the side-winder (Crotalus cerastes) is about 3Km/h
- Lateral undulation
Most of the snakes use it. Each point of the body pass successively by the same location of the ground, without statical contact. Waves of muscular contraction and relaxation alternate from one side to the other from the head to the tail.
There is a continuous slip of the animal against the bumps.
This characteristics make it all the more efficient on bumped grounds and for long snakes.
Maximum speed record is 11km/h by a Black Manba on a distance of 43 meters.
- Slide Pushing
Slide pushing is used on flat grounds.
The snake takes the shape of a 'S'.
The curvature, result of the contraction wave, progress through the snake tailward.
Contacts with the environment in sequence on the left, then on the right, as the wave propagates, slip backward.
As a reaction to the slip friction, a propulsion force appear, which results in a sinusoid trajectory of the gravity center.
Waves of bending pass backward along the body, exerting a thrust against vertical projections in the surroundings.
This mode of displacement is very energy consumming since about two thirds of the movement quantity are lost.
This is the method used by the mechanical snake.
I chose slide pushing because it requires no sensation feedback from the ground-skin contacts.
- L'ondulation latérale de l'axe vertebral dans un foureau musculo-tégumentaire
Worms like.
In a smooth, straight tube a snake can advance by throwing parts of its body into concertina folds that brace it against the sides of the tube.
- Swim
Long, thin fish and reptiles, such as eels and snakes, swim by undulating the whole body like in the lateral wave motion; the waves of bending pass tailward so that the water exerts a net forward reaction on the animal.
But snakes can also climb or jump...
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There are six gaits !
- Accordeon like
Used on flat grounds or in tunnels.
This locomotion take advantage of statical friction. Parts of the body in touch with the substratum make it possible the movement of other "adjacent" parts, which are pushed or pulled. The snake seems to fold then unfold successively. While one part of the body folds and creates a contact with the substratum while the other part is pushed or pulled from that contact. - Rectilinear
Results of waves of contraction passing along the belly from one end to the other. Boas and vipers can also creep along with their bodies straight by waves of muscular contraction passing along the belly, in the style of the earthworm. Belly scales set up then sink. Big snakes like Boas and Anacondas (water boa) can use that method. Young snakes can even progress on perfectly flat and vertical surfaces like glass especially when they are wet, taking advantage of surface tension. Reached Speed is about a few centimeters per second. This is the prefered mean of progression on flat terrains for big snakes when there is no urgency.
- Side-Winding
Used on soft grounds like sand. The maximum speed reached by the side-winder (Crotalus cerastes) is about 3Km/h
- Lateral undulation
Most of the snakes use it. Each point of the body pass successively by the same location of the ground, without statical contact. Waves of muscular contraction and relaxation alternate from one side to the other from the head to the tail. There is a continuous slip of the animal against the bumps.
This characteristics make it all the more efficient on bumped grounds and for long snakes.
Maximum speed record is 11km/h by a Black Manba on a distance of 43 meters.
- Slide Pushing
Slide pushing is used on flat grounds.
The snake takes the shape of a 'S'. The curvature, result of the contraction wave, progress through the snake tailward.
Contacts with the environment in sequence on the left, then on the right, as the wave propagates, slip backward.
As a reaction to the slip friction, a propulsion force appear, which results in a sinusoid trajectory of the gravity center.Waves of bending pass backward along the body, exerting a thrust against vertical projections in the surroundings.
This mode of displacement is very energy consumming since about two thirds of the movement quantity are lost.
This is the method used by the mechanical snake.
I chose slide pushing because it requires no sensation feedback from the ground-skin contacts.
- L'ondulation latérale de l'axe vertebral dans un foureau musculo-tégumentaire
Worms like. In a smooth, straight tube a snake can advance by throwing parts of its body into concertina folds that brace it against the sides of the tube. - Swim
Long, thin fish and reptiles, such as eels and snakes, swim by undulating the whole body like in the lateral wave motion; the waves of bending pass tailward so that the water exerts a net forward reaction on the animal.
But snakes can also climb or jump...
Back to the "Sniky the Mechanical Snake" home page
Back to the Mobile Robots page
Reach the top