Visitor FAQs: Why do snakes swallow their food whole?

One thing I love about my profession as an interpretive naturalist is that I never stop learning new things.  And it's often the visitors of the nature center where I work that ask the most interesting questions.  Below is my answer to a question a recent visitor asked. 

 Question:  Why do snakes swallow their food whole instead of chewing?

 Snakes lack incisor teeth, which are teeth that are modified for chewing and which are usually found on the jaws of mammals, including humans.  The teeth on most species of snakes in the northern United States are meant for gripping their prey as well as for self defense.  The long, tube-like shape of snakes allows for plenty of room to consume a rodent or other small animal.  A snake's lower jaw is actually divided into two plates that can move separately allow the snake to draw its prey into its mouth.  For larger prey items, snakes can actually pop their jaw, allowing their mouths to open wider.  
Figure 1:  Myself holding a Bull Snake (Pitophus catenifer), a snake species native to the Western Great Lakes and Upper Midwest.  

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