First Real Bite lol

[d_virginiana]

I got my first real bite today. I was trying to dig my neurologically-damaged guy out from under his papers to feed him and I guess I smelled like food, so he latched on. This was the first time one has ever gotten the rear fangs into me, since they're usually smart enough to realize my hands aren't food. The end of my finger is still numb which is pretty surprising considering how small this guy is!

[Albert Clark]

Sorry to hear about that. Wow, garters can show their stuff at times. My baby granite checkered leaves my hand smelling like urine and musk every time I pick her up. She struck at me once with her mouth closed. Well, feel better and best wishes.

[guidofatherof5]

Rear fangs?

[d_virginiana]

Probably not the correct terminology :p Is there a different term for the longer teeth at the back of the mouth? This bite had a 'vampire bite' type look with two punctures that bled pretty badly even for such a small snake, whereas the bites that I've had from the front of the mouth usually just have a scrape-like look to them. I was under the impression that colubrids had slightly longer teeth at the back of the mouth that were more rear-facing than those at the front that they used to really grab and hang on to prey (and work in whatever mild venom they have).
Is this incorrect? This is totally knowledge I've gotten from forums and the like and not actual research.

[d_virginiana]

Just found this on wikipedia, this is what I was talking about. I was assuming it was the enlarged teeth at the back that got me.

"Garter snakes were long thought to be nonvenomous, but recent discoveries have revealed they do, in fact, produce a mild neurotoxic venom.[10] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garter_snake#cite_note-10) Garter snakes cannot kill humans with the small amounts of comparatively mild venom they produce, and they also lack an effective means of delivering it. They do have enlarged teeth in the back of their mouths, but their gums are significantly larger.[11] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garter_snake#cite_note-11)[12] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garter_snake#cite_note-12) The Duvernoy's gland (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duvernoy%27s_gland) of garters are posterior (to the rear) of the snake's eyes.[13] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garter_snake#cite_note-13) The mild venom is spread into wounds through a chewing action."

[guidofatherof5]

I've never read anything that called a garter snake "rear-fanged" not in the sense of a true rear-fanged snake like a Hognose and many others. I've seen and felt many a garter bite and wouldn't call anything in their mouth a fang. Not in the true sense of the word.
Welcome to the bite club Lora. Next on the list is to get a real chewer that grinds those teeth in while giving you a garter snake death stare.:D

[d_virginiana]

Yeah, I figured fang probably wasn't the right word (I think true fangs have to be hollow, don't they?). Yeah, I happened to be on the phone when this happened so the conversation got kind of interesting.

[RedSidedSPR]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/PSM_V42_D504_Skull_of_garter_snake.jpg

[RedSidedSPR]

I know what you mean though.

I learned what fangs felt like when I got my tree boa lol

[d_virginiana]

Yeah, I've got a ball python that can get pretty overexcited around food. It's really just a waiting game to see how long it takes before I get tagged by her.

[joeysgreen]

Late to the discussion, but I believe the true definition of a fang is a specialized tooth used in the delivery of venom. Garter snakes don't have teeth specialized for this purpose, but their venom is delivered via bite wound caused by the teeth. This is probably stretching the definition of course and I think we all agree as the above consensus would show. While Jesse's tree boa has very long teeth, some of which may be specialized for grasping, they wouldn't be fangs ( I know you weren't suggesting they were really fangs) due to the lack of venom to be delivered.

A stronger definition of what a fang is includes it including a groove or hollow duct for venom delivery. With the massive array of dentition, this narrow definition may exclude some dangerously venomous animals, but of that I am uncertain.

Ian

ps, thanks for sharing the diagram :)