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In snakes, the ventral scales or gastrosteges are the enlarged and transversely elongated scales that extend down the underside of the body from the neck to the anal scale. When counting them, the first is the anteriormost ventral scale that contacts the paraventral (lowermost) row of dorsal scales on either side. The anal scale is not counted. [1]
Scales in the central or throat region, which are in contact with the first ventral scales of a snake's body and are flanked by the chin shields, are called gular scales. The mental groove is a longitudinal groove on the underside of the head between the large, paired chin shields and continuing between the smaller gular scales.
The shape and number of scales on the head, back and belly are characteristic to family, genus and species. Scales have a nomenclature analogous to the position on the body. In "advanced" (Caenophidian) snakes, the broad belly scales and rows of dorsal scales correspond to the vertebrae, allowing scientists to count the vertebrae without ...
Most snakes use specialized belly scales to travel, allowing them to grip surfaces. The body scales may be smooth, keeled, or granular. The eyelids of a snake are transparent "spectacle" scales, also known as brille, which remain permanently closed. [citation needed] For a snake, the skin has been modified to its specialized form of locomotion.
Most snakes have extra broad scales on the belly, each scale covering the belly from side to side. The scales of all reptiles have an epidermal component (what one sees on the surface), but many reptiles, such as crocodilians and turtles, have osteoderms underlying the epidermal scale.
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The scales on top of the head are large, regular, and entire. The rostral scale on the tip of the snout is conical in shape, and the second of three supralabial scales is the largest. The body has 15–17 rows of smooth, overlapping scales. It has 125–145 ventral scales, a single anal scale, and 20–33 single subcaudal scales. [3]
This internasal pair is either present or absent in species of Vermicella; (2) Number of black bands on the body and tail combined; (3) Number of ventral scales. The ventral scales are elongated, horizontal scales that occur on the belly of the snake up until the anal plate. After the anal plate, the scales are subcaudal scales. [3]