Why in news
The sci-fi writer David Brin built his fictitious ‘Uplift Universe’ in a series of novels for two decades from 1980.
In the series, a patron race uplifts species of a future universe to a higher order of life.
Something similar happened in the earth’s distant past when many species went through bursts of evolutionary innovation, taking giant leaps and incorporating extraordinary diversity in their population, while others were left behind.
Snake basic details
Snakes play an important role in the ecosystem by helping to control populations of rodents and other small animals.
They are also a popular source of food and medicine in some cultures.
However, they are also feared and misunderstood by many people, due to their association with venom and their often-slithery appearance.
Elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles belonging to the suborder Serpentes.
Over 3,400 known species, making them the second-largest group of squamates (scaled reptiles) after lizards.
Ectothermic (cold-blooded), meaning they rely on external sources for heat to regulate their body temperature.
Covered in overlapping scales that they shed periodically through a process called molting.
Lack external limbs and movable eyelids.
They smell with their forked tongues and have a special organ in the roof of their mouth called the Jacobson's organ to help them taste and smell.
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