Sunday, April 14, 2013

Mascot Nomination (Drymarchon couperi)

In my opinion as mascots have been used by sports teams and schools to create not only a sense of unity among team members but also as a source of intimidation. I considered what reptile I would find most threatening. At first any member of the family Crotalidae popped to mind as they are all venomous and have a menacing look to them. However, as I pondered on which to choose I wondered which would win in a fight. It was at this point that I realized that I had it all wrong. I did not need to pick the snake that people find scary, but rather I needed to pick the snake that would be intimidating to those as they would be candidates for other teams. I am sure that many schools and teams use rattle snakes and copperheads as mascots, and if I were to ever play against them I would like to do so as an indigo snake.
The indigo snake (Drymarchon couperi) can grow up to 9 feet long, and is known to use other snakes as a food source. They are able to use force to overpower other snakes including venomous ones and will proceed to eat them. In fact on the field trip to the aquarium we were told that the two indigo snakes they had (one male, one female) would not be bred because they were afraid that they would eat each other.
It is for this aggressive behavior that I endorse this herp to be our mascot.

1 comment:

Herpetology Class said...

Step aside Clyde... here come the College of Charleston Fighting Indigo Snakes!