We have been presenting Robosquirrel to snakes in ambush position. During one trial, a snake actually struck the head of the robot! It also left a pool of venom on the head which we collected into a syringe. This is interesting because one hypothesis as to why squirrels tail flag in front of snakes is to deter them from striking. During this trial, the robot was not tail-flagging presumably allowing the snake to strike more easily than if the robot had been tail-flagging. We need to perform more trials to see if any patterns emerge. Enjoy the video!
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Robosquirrel is Struck!
We have been presenting Robosquirrel to snakes in ambush position. During one trial, a snake actually struck the head of the robot! It also left a pool of venom on the head which we collected into a syringe. This is interesting because one hypothesis as to why squirrels tail flag in front of snakes is to deter them from striking. During this trial, the robot was not tail-flagging presumably allowing the snake to strike more easily than if the robot had been tail-flagging. We need to perform more trials to see if any patterns emerge. Enjoy the video!
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Hell YES! That is awesome! Great video too!
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