I can sizzle like bacon, I am made with an egg,
I have plenty of backbone, but lack a good leg,
I peel layers like onions, but still remain whole,
I can be long, like a flagpole, yet fit in a hole,

What am I?

The answer is a snake, but is better described as that of a snake of the genera Elaphe, id est, the corn snake.

The vibration of the corn snake's tail in dry leaves resembles that of a rattlesnake, and may sound very much like sizzling bacon.

Unlike rattlesnakes, corn snakes and other ratsnakes lay eggs (rattlesnakes give live birth).  As do almost all snakes, the corn snake has no legs, and has a long, tapering cylindrical body with plenty of backbone.  Snakes often shed their skin (like layers of an onion) several times a year as they grow.

Though the corn snake is not generally found in burrows, they, like many of their cousins, may slither into such holes when the weather reaches toward the extremes.  Snakes are cold-blooded creatures and prefer a more stable and warm temperature.

Posted by Dej Mar on 2006-05-27 02:58:46