Although snake species have different methods of finding and catching prey, all snakes eat in basically the same way. Their amazingly expandable jaws enable them to prey on animals of much larger size -- and swallow them whole. Whereas the upper jaw of a human is fused to the skull and therefore unable to move, a snake's upper jaw is attached to its braincase by muscles, ligaments and tendons, allowing it some front-to-back and side-to-side mobility. The upper jaw connects to the lower jaw by the quadrate bone, which works like a double-jointed hinge so the lower jaw can dislocate, allowing the mouth to open as wide as 150 degrees. Also, the bones that make up the sides of the jaws are not fused together at the front like the human chin, but instead are connected by muscle tissue, allowing the sides to separate and move independently of one another. All of this flexibility comes in handy when a snake encounters prey bigger than its head -- its head can stretch to accommodate it
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