A mongoose vs snake fight is an amazing battle that pits a mammal that should have no chance on paper against some of the deadliest creatures in the world. Remember, snakes are responsible for over 100,000 human deaths every year, and the mongoose is a much smaller mammal.
So, who would win in a fight? We have taken the data of an average mongoose and put it against an average snake. We’ll examine outliers and talk about situational elements of battle that could influence this match.
Take a look at how a mongoose and snake fight would likely pan out.
The Key Factors in a Fight Between a Mongoose and Snake
The mongoose vs snake fight would boil down to a few factors. These include size, speed, the way that the creatures attack, and more. We’ve broken these concepts down into two sections: physical features and combat skills.
These factors will help us determine which creature comes out on top in a fight.
Physical Features
When two wild animals fight, size is a great factor. Since we are generalizing the snake category, we used average statistics for them while also using an average mongoose size. They can also vary across species.
Take a look at the physical features to learn how we determined which of these two stands the best chance at walking away after a fight.
Mongoose vs Snake: Size
The mongoose is a small mammal belonging to the cat superfamily, feliforma, so they share a size but nothing else with felines as we know them. The average mongoose weighs between 5-10 pounds and is only 30 inches long.
The average snake weighs up to 20lbs, but many of them can exceed that weight. In terms of length, they’re often 36 inches long, with many of them even longer than that.
For size, snakes get the advantage.
Mongoose vs Snake: Speed and Movement
Snakes vary in their speed and movement a fair amount, but the average snake has trouble reaching 1mph consistently. Their means of moving, an undulating slither, is not the most effective at covering ground quickly.
The mongoose is a small mammal that can run very vast for its size, up to 20mph. Moreover, this animal is exceptionally agile.
The mongoose gets the edge in speed.
Mongoose vs Snake: Bite Power and Teeth
A mongoose has 28 teeth, four of which are powerful incisors that can instantly break bones, including vertebrae and skulls of smaller animals.
The snake bite can be irritating in the best case or deadly in the worst case. Their venom is enough to kill most creatures. Their fangs vary in length, with some more capable of puncturing their prey’s flesh than others.
This category is a tie; both creatures can use their deadliest tools very well.
Mongoose vs Snake: Senses
Snakes have amazing senses that allow them to sense changes in temperature and feel vibrations better than a lot of others. Also, snakes have a good sense of taste, and they can use their tongues to “taste” the air and learn about the environment.
The mongoose also has very keen senses, with good vision, great hearing, and a fantastic sense of smell. On average, the mongoose has better senses than the snake, even though they cannot detect the temperature in the same way.
The mongoose gets the advantage in this situation.
Mongoose vs Snake: Physical Defenses
The snake’s physical defenses boil down to its ability to hide in small spaces along with defensive posturing that scares off a lot of predators. Bright colors, hissing, rattles— people and animals alike know that they mean its time to back off.
The mongoose has more practical defenses, with thick fur and tough skin along with the ability to resist venom, something that comes in handy against snakes.
In this case, the mongoose’s defenses are better, and it gets the advantage.
Combat Skills
Size and offensive powers are great, but it’s the combat skills that can change the tide in a fight. Learn about the ways that snakes and mongooses fight enemies and kill prey.
Mongoose vs Snake: Offensive Capabilities
The mongoose has serious offensive capabilities. They have strong digging claws, a powerful, bone-snapping bite, and the agility to dance around their prey until they find a weak spot or tire them out.
Snakes can have many offensive capabilities, but they tend to either be venomous or constrictors that crush the life out of their prey. They are careful predators that strike at opportune moments because they are very vulnerable at any place that isn’t their head.