Twisted Network Programming Essentials, 2nd Edition

Colophon

The image on the cover of Twisted Network Programming Essentials, 2nd Edition shows a ball of snakes. When the ground begins to thaw in spring, things heat up for some species of snakes. Males emerge from their hibernation dens cold, hungry, and randy! An estimated 50,000 male snakes can fill a location such as a limestone quarry, waiting patiently for nearby females to emerge. When they do, the mating frenzy begins, and it can last up to three weeks.

As many as 100 to 1,000 males will compete to mate with a single female, sometimes surrounding her before she can fully emerge from her den. The males wrap around the female, becoming a living ball that can grow to be two feet high. The constant writhing of the snakes can even propel the ball over rocks and tree roots.

In some cases, the size of the snake ball will crush the female to death. However, this does not always deter the males, who may continue to mate with her.

A female will normally mate with only one male in the ball; once a male has successfully copulated with her, he releases a pheromone that temporarily makes all other males in the ball impotent. When the female selects her partner, the ball unravels and the unsuccessful males go in search of another female.

Since it is difficult for snakes to determine the gender of their potential partner, males detect the female by using their flicking tongues to sense the female’s pheromones, which stimulate the males to mate. The male rubs his chin against the grain of ...