how can a flying snake change its direction in mid air?

Answer 1

By moving its tail.

Answer 2

Chrysopelea are called "flying snakes", though this is misleading, as they actually glide instead of flying. This is done by flattening their bodies to up to twice their width from the back of the head to the vent. Impressively, these snakes can glide better in comparison to flying squirrels and other gliding animals – a grand feat for a creature lacking any limbs, wings or wing-like projections. Their destination is mostly predicted by ballistics; however, they can exercise some in-flight attitude control by "slithering" in the air. Their ability to glide has been an object of interest for physicists in recent years, and studies continue to be made on what other, more subtle factors contribute to their flight.

Answer 3

it does this by steering with its head. and it actually doesnt fly, skin flaps on the sides of body extend and it sorta glides down.

Answer 4

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Answer 5

given the hundreds of thousands of different animals inhabiting our planet, the list of those that can fly is quite small. There are birds, of course, and some insects, as well as bats, and creatures that can glide, such as flying squirrels and gliding lizards. Now, we must welcome another member to the airborne species list: flying snakes.
It's hard to think of an animal more earthbound than the snake, without even arms or legs to propel it a few inches off the ground. Yet zoologists have long studied so-called flying snakes that travel from tree to tree in pursuit of prey and in flight from predators. But until recently scientists believed that these arboreal snakes did not so much glide as parachute, dropping from one tree to another.

A recent study shows that at least one species of flying snake does actually glide. Using videotape, scientists carefully observed paradise tree snakes as they hung from branches and then flung themselves through the air. By flattening their bodies and slithering in mid air, the snakes formed S-shaped wings that generated lift and allowed them to glide rather than simply fall. Using their heads to steer, the snakes were able to change direction in mid air and even avoid obstacles.

If you're afraid of snakes, and now suddenly anxious that the slithering creatures will start dropping out of the sky, don't worry; flying snake are indigenous to Southeast Asia. And even if you one day find yourself hiking through the Burmese rain forest and a snake comes gliding your way, fear not. Flying snakes are classified as harmless.

You might not think snakes need any more tools in their box of fright tactics. However, some of these slithering reptiles are dramatic flyers.

Jake Socha of the University of Chicago has been studying snakes' ability to act like birds for eight years. Today he revealed just how good they are at winging it.

"Despite their lack of wing-like appendages, flying snakes are skilled aerial locomotors," he said.

Like a Frisbee

Snakes join birds, insects, bats, squirrels and even ants in the realm of aerial prowess. So just how do they do it?

"First of all, they flatten their bodies out all the way from their head to tail," Socha told LiveScience. "Snakes are part body and part tail, and they have ribs up until the tail. They flatten their ribs and make themselves Frisbee-like in form."

This gets them aerodynamically fit for gliding.

"As [the snake] starts falling, it starts sending large S-shaped waves through its body mostly by moving its head from side to side," Socha explained. "It also keeps its body parallel to the ground."

Since they don’t have wings, snakes control their flight patterns by sort of slithering through the air. By undulating their bodies in an exaggerated S-shaped pattern, they maintain in-flight stability. It’s sort of like how a tight-rope walker shifts weight from side to side to keep balance.

To get airborne, snakes either hang from a branch, search for a comfy landing spot, and drop, or they actively leap off the branch, which gives them a little more height and allows them to glide farther.

Socha isn’t quite sure why snakes developed the ability to glide, but he suggests that they do it to save energy.

"Say you’re in one tree and you want to get to another tree that’s 50 feet away. You would have to climb down, slither across, and climb up the tree," he explained.

Turning in mid-air

The paradise tree snake seems to be the only species of flying snake that can turn mid-flight. Socha has found.

"There are some small clues to how turning works, but I don’t have the details yet," he said. "When they are making the turn, it seems that the actual turning only occurs when their head is pointing in the direction they want to turn in."

Socha also studied Chrysopelea ornata, the golden tree snake. Both snakes live in the trees in the lowland tropical rainforests in South and Southeast Asia.

Most flying snakes – there are three additional species – grow about 3 to 4 feet long. They secrete a mild venom, but this is only hazardous to small prey – such as lizards, birds, frogs, and bats – and they are officially classified as harmless to humans.

Socha’s findings will be detailed in the May 15 issue of the Journal of Experimental Biology. Videos of the snakes in flight are available here.