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Alligators, Spiders and Snakes Oh My!
Dental Facts About Some of Nature's Creatures
One way to tell the difference between alligators and crocodiles is by their teeth. On crocodiles, the fourth tooth on each side of the lower jaw projects outside the snout when the mouth is closed. Alligator teeth are conical shaped and made for grabbing and holding prey. Alligators don't chew their food, but swallow it whole. If an alligator loses a tooth, it grows back.
The Great Barracuda, also called the "wolf of the sea," can grow more than six feet long. Although barracuda rarely attack swimmers and divers, they can be dangerous if brought on board a fishing boat. The barracuda's huge, powerful teeth can seriously damage the deck and anyone who happens to get near it.
All bats have spiky teeth. There really is a vampire bat, which lives in Central and South America, and it does drink blood. Its victim is usually a sleeping animal, which the bat nips on the ankle or toe with its razor-sharp teeth. Victims rarely notice that anything happened and they don't turn into vampires.
Komodo dragons are large, fierce reptiles that live in Indonesia. They have large serrated teeth, and will eat almost anything. They aren't venomous, but their mouths are loaded with bacteria, which can cause fatal infections in their victims.
The Sheepshead is a type of sport fish that lives in the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico. Its large teeth (which are used for crushing and grinding) look oddly like a human's teeth.
All snakes have teeth, but not for chewing. Snake teeth are sharp and slanted backward, which keeps prey from escaping. Certain poisonous snakes, called pit vipers, have fangs. The fangs have a canal that runs through them, with an opening near the tip. Muscles enveloping the snake's poison gland force the poison through the canal and out the tip. North American pit vipers have two rows of teeth on the top and bottom; nonpoisonous snakes have four rows on top and four on the bottom.
Spiders don't have teeth, but do have fangs. They quickly kill their prey (usually insects) with fangs and poison. Each fang is connected to a venom gland. The venom immobilizes prey and starts digestion.
Modern turtles do not have teeth, but fossils of prehistoric turtles do have teeth. Some turtles, such as the alligator snapping turtle, have sharp beaks and strong jaws. Baby turtles, called hatchlings, appear to have a tooth when they first hatch. Called the "egg-tooth," it is located at the front of the upper jaw. It usually disappears a few months after hatching. The egg tooth is really a modified scale and not a real tooth.
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