Interaction With Humans
Hog-nosed snakes are considered to be "rear-fanged" colubrids, and do not pose any danger to humans. They will generally only bite as a feeding response, rarely in defense. The defensive bite response is usually due to the temporary blindness experienced while shedding. Because the snake cannot see while shedding, it becomes skittish and more prone to bite in defense. A defensive bite may also occur in gravid (egg carrying) females. The saliva they excrete is considered toxic to prey (frogs and toads) but not dangerous to humans. There has been some debate whether or not hog-nosed snakes are venomous. Their saliva has some toxicity to smaller prey items, such as toads and frogs. Toads inflate their lungs to make swallowing difficult, but the hog-nosed snakes' enlarged teeth, located at the rear of the upper jaw, can penetrate the toads' lungs and deflate them. However, whole toads with intact lungs are commonly regurgitated by recently captured wild hognoses.
Read more about this topic: Heterodon Nasicus
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