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Two Eastern Hog-Nosed Snakes Mating (Heterodon platirhinos) Harmless, Inoffensive, Beneficial--Observed in Southwest Montgomery, Texas Photos courtesy of Barb and Don; text by Jerry Cates The eastern hog-nosed snake becomes sexually mature at 21 months of age. The male follows the female's scent trail, which--from time to time--may attract more than one suitor. In most areas within this snake's range mating occurs from mid-April to the end of May. However, in southeast Texas, mating takes place as early as late March. The two specimens in the photograph below are, yes, engaging in the fine art of mating. The largest of girth, at the upper left, is the female, a fact that is more obvious in the last photograph, further down the page, for reasons I will elucidate when describing that photo. The male is stretched out, his head in the lower right of the photo. He appears rather timid, and is not posturing to threaten the photographer, while his mate is posturing fiercely, her hood spread about her head in a menacing appearance. Why the dichotomy? It's a good question, and the answer has to do with the different roles of the two partners. The male in this photo is in the process of conducting sperm via a hemipene he previously inserted into the female's cloaca. The organ is paired, and only one half is inserted, at which time it becomes enlarged to the point that it cannot easily be withdrawn while the sperm is conducted from the male to the female. The process takes time to complete. During that period the male is preoccupied, and essentially unable to attend to other issues. The female is the passive partner, more concerned about completing the sex act with a full complement of sperm from the male. If an aggressor intervenes and causes the act to terminate prematurely, she may not have enough sperm to fertilize her eggs (4-61 to a clutch). So, while the male concentrates on his part, she guards the site.
Look at the male's head, shown in the photo below. He appears to be hiding, with his head low to the ground, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible.
The female (note her curled, curlicue tail, compared to the long, gently tapered tail of the male) is not trying to hide, but instead is presenting as big an act of aggression as possible. She's just as harmless as ever, though, and if the photographer had tried to intervene, she would probably have flipped on her back with her mouth wide open, feigning death.
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