The gymnasssts of the animal kingdom! Incredible footage reveals how some snakes perform CARTWHEELS

With their long thin bodies, snakes are known for their silent, slippery movements when approaching unsuspecting prey.

But a new study has revealed that some species are also gymnasts that can do cartwheels if necessary.

Researchers at Universiti Malaysia Sabah studied dwarf reed snakes in Southeast Asia and were amazed to see the animals flip when threatened.

“My colleagues and I were thrilled when we were able to successfully capture images documenting the cartwheeling behavior of this species,” said lead author, Dr Evan Seng Huat Quah.

“We believe this behavior is more common in other small snake species, especially members of the subfamily Calamariinae, but the lack of data is likely an artifact of the challenges in detecting and observing these arcane species.”

In the study, the team sought to understand the movements snakes perform when they feel threatened.

Usually, snakes display an array of tactics, including flight, camouflage, coloration, scenting, intimidation, and even feigning their own death.

Occasionally, some small species also use passive rolling when frightened.

However, the new study finds that dwarf reed snakes cartwheeled to escape predators.

The team headed to the Malaysian state of Kedah, home to the Dwarf Reed Snake – a small, nocturnal snake.

To simulate an approaching predator, the researchers poked a snake with a stick.

In response, the snake performed “active cartwheels” by repeatedly launching its body’s coils into the air and rolling down slopes.

In the study, published in Biotropicsthe researchers wrote: ‘Rolling or riding behavior as an escape mechanism has been recorded in a few species and is mostly performed by invertebrates.

The snake performed “active cartwheels” by repeatedly launching its body’s contortions into the air and rolling down ramps

‘These include desert shrews and an unidentified Salticidae, moth caterpillars and larvae of four genera and six species of tiger beetles, the mantis shrimp, the ant, pill millipedes and some isopods.

“However, the behavior is exceptionally rare in vertebrates.”

The team now hopes to study the snakes of Southeast Asia to see if other species also cartwheel.

“There is still much to learn about the behavior and ecology of the snakes in Southeast Asia and more observations and studies in the future will certainly reveal many more interesting aspects of their natural history,” the team concluded.