Identification Guide to Snake Tracks in Dirt, Sand, and More

Quick Take

• Straight snake tracks sound like the simplest pattern to spot, but they actually reveal something specific about the snake that left them. See the straight-line tracks →
• One of the five ways snakes move burns dramatically more energy than the rest, and perhaps surprisingly it is not the one that looks the most exhausting. Discover the costliest movement →
• Sidewinding looks bizarre, but desert snakes have a very specific reason for moving that way. Surprisingly, it has nothing to do with speed. Explore sidewinding's real purpose →
• Some snake movements leave almost no trace at all, which means the tracks you don't see can be just as telling as the ones you do. See how traces vary →

Snakes are limbless, carnivorous reptiles in the suborder Serpentes, with between 3,400 and 4,000 described species. They are found globally on every continent except Antarctica and on a few remote islands, including Hawaii, Iceland, Ireland, and New Zealand. While all snakes are ectothermic (relying on external heat sources), not all are egg-layers. Approximately 70% of snakes lay eggs, while 30% give birth to live young. Snakes often leave tracks as they travel through their respective environments. Continue reading to discover how to identify snake tracks in different substrates, including dirt, sand, and mud.

How are Snake Tracks Identified?

Signs that a snake is nearby include discarded skin, droppings containing rodent fur and bone, rustling leaves, hissing, and straight or winding paths through grass, sand, or dirt.

It is easy to overlook a snake track, and snakes often inhabit terrain where they can’t leave tracks, such as rocks or water. Therefore, snakes leave their most distinct, identifiable tracks in sand, mud, and soft soil. The five ways snakes move are:

• Lateral undulation
• Concertina locomotion
• Rectilinear movement
• Slide-pushing
• Sidewinding

If the snake tracks are straight, they are likely from a larger, heavier snake species.

What is Lateral Undulation?

Lateral undulation is the most common way that snakes move. Tracks made from lateral undulation will leave waves that alternate from side to side, which results in a serpentine pattern, as the snake’s muscles contract in a wave that moves from its head down to its tail. Snakes use environmental obstacles as leverage to propel themselves forward, rather than needing a perfectly smooth surface to slide on. Observing this movement illustrates why snakes exert more force against obstructions in the environment. This locomotion doesn’t leave a print because the snake’s body follows the trail created by the head and neck when there is sliding friction present.

What is Concertina Locomotion?

Concertina locomotion resembles an accordion. First, the snake anchors a section of its body to a surface. Next, it pushes or pulls a different section of its body away or towards the anchored body part. These movements make it appear that the snake is bending its body and straightening it out again. This movement burns more calories than lateral undulation, which requires less effort. Unfortunately, it’s tough to get images of these tracks because they are usually in tight spaces (tunnels) or vertical surfaces (trees/climbing).

What is Rectilinear Movement?

Rectilinear movement is closely associated with large and heavy snakes like pythons, boas, and puff adders. A rectilinear movement track is basically straight with no wave-like movement and is probably the easiest to identify. This track will only bend when the snake needs to change direction. The movement occurs by alternately lifting the belly scales, pulling them forward, downward, and finally backward, allowing the snake to crawl along the surface. Therefore, this type of locomotion involves a lot of static friction, unlike lateral undulation and sidewinding, which require significant side-to-side motion.

What is the Purpose of Slide-pushing?

Slide-pushing is only used on smooth surfaces, so tracks from slide-pushing are rare. Snakes use this movement when attempting to escape quickly on smooth surfaces, undulating their bodies irregularly. As the snake bends its body irregularly, it pushes its tail against various points to move its center of mass. This method creates wide, distinctive tracks because of the exaggerated, compressed body waves.

Which Snakes Use Sidewinding?

Sidewinding creates individual tracks that are perpendicular to the direction the snake is moving. These tracks appear as straight, slanted segments. Therefore, it is easy to identify these tracks, but they are rare because not many snakes can make them. Species that use this movement do so only on loose sand, such as in deserts. However, sidewinding is primarily used by certain viper species, such as sidewinder rattlesnakes and desert adders. Desert snakes use this locomotion to minimize contact with the hot sand. Snake species that use sidewinding include:

• The Homalopsine family of snakes native to Southeast Asia
• The Mojave sidewinder rattlesnake native to the deserts of the United States and Mexico
• Namib desert sidewinding adder native to the deserts of southern Angola and Namibia