# What is the difference between a snake and a lizard?

> Snakes are legless reptiles in the suborder Serpentes; most lizards have four legs (though some legless lizards exist). Snakes lack eyelids and external ear openings; lizards usually have both. Jaw structure also differs — snakes can swallow prey much wider than their head.

**Category:** Wildlife  ·  **Updated:** 2026-07-05

## Key takeaways
- Snakes: no eyelids, flexible jaws, usually legless.
- Lizards: usually legs and eyelids — legless lizards exist.
- Check eyelids to separate legless lizard from snake.
- Snakes control rodents — ecological benefit.
- Pet and skin trades threaten many species.
- CITES regulates international snake trade.

## Answer
Not every legless reptile is a snake. Slow worms and glass lizards are legless lizards with eyelids and shorter, less flexible skulls. True snakes have a greatly elongated body with 200–400 vertebrae.

Snakes use forked tongues to “smell” chemical trails in the air. Many are constrictors or venomous predators controlling rodent populations — ecologically valuable when left in habitat.

The exotic pet trade and snake-skin fashion industry drive overcollection of pythons and other species. CITES lists many snakes in Appendices I or II. WARN’s trafficking answers cover how to report illegal wildlife sales.

## Head and skull differences
Snakes lack eyelids — spectacles transparent scales cover eyes. Lizards blink with movable eyelids except geckos that lick eyes clean. Snakes lack external ear openings though they detect vibrations. Jaw quadrate bone allows snakes to gape enormously — left and right mandibles separate swallowing prey larger than head diameter. Legless lizards have shorter less mobile skulls — cannot swallow cattle-sized meals. Tongue flicking in snakes delivers scent particles to Jacobson's organ — chemical trail following.

## Legless lizard confusion
Slow worms in Europe and glass lizards in Americas lost legs but retain eyelids and sometimes visible ear openings. Body scales differ — snakes have wide ventral scutes; legless lizards often resemble snakes until head examined closely. Autotomy — tail drop — common in lizards including legless; snakes cannot drop body same way. Misidentification affects fear response — legless lizard harmless in garden mistaken for snake and killed.

## Ecological roles
Snakes control rodents — ecologically valuable in farms and forests when left undisturbed. Venomous species avoid humans when habitat intact. Constrictors regulate mammal populations in tropics. Lizards fill insectivore and herbivore niches — monitors apex in some islands. Both groups threatened by habitat loss and collection — python leather fashion and pet trade drive overharvest documented in CITES seizure reports.

## Trafficking and pets
Ball pythons and corn snakes common captive bred — but wild collection persists for novelty morphs and species. Large pythons abandoned in Florida Everglades became invasive — lesson against releasing pets. WARN trafficking answers cover reporting illegal wildlife sales online. CITES Appendix I bans commercial export of many threatened snakes — buyers should demand proof of captive breeding.

## FAQ
### How do you tell a snake from a lizard?
Snakes lack eyelids and usually legs; lizards have eyelids (except geckos) and usually legs. Legless lizards have eyelids.

### Are legless lizards snakes?
No — slow worms and glass lizards are lizards with eyelids and different skulls.

### Can snakes unhinge jaws?
Jaws separate flexibly — not truly unhinged but quadrate bone allows huge gape.

### Are all snakes venomous?
No — majority non-venomous; venomous fraction varies by region.

### Are snakes endangered?
Many threatened by habitat loss, skin trade and persecution — check IUCN per species.

### Is snake pet trade legal?
Captive bred often legal; wild CITES Appendix I species banned internationally — see exotic pet trade answer.

## Sources
- [Reptile Database — Serpentes](https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz)

Human-readable page: https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/answers/snake-vs-lizard-difference