See A Rat Escape A Deadly Snake Attack Using Matrix-Style Moves

You have to see the epic video of a rat escaping a deadly snake in a fight that looks like it came right out of a big-budget movie. Sometimes nature has the best special effects.

By Doug Norrie | Published

This article is more than 2 years old

snake snakes

Sometimes the animal kingdom gives us something that looks like it was taken directly out of the special effects department from a big-budget movie. This is one of those times. In a video that is making the viral rounds through the internet, a rat is involved with a snake and the former pulls off some of the most amazing moves you’ll ever see to avoid being bitten and then, presumably, eaten. You really do have to see this to believe it. 

The original video was shared on TikTok by user gaixinh81663932 and then by Twitter user syedaliff. It has now been viewed more than 19 million times between the two platforms. Considering how cool this looks, that number feels awfully low. It’s a testament to not only slow-motion video capture but also the majesty of the animal kingdom, even among its diminutive creatures, that something so cool can be seen. Check out the video that everyone else is watching over and over again.  

https://www.tiktok.com/@gaixinh81663932/video/7027054017217957146

Things start innocently enough with a rat staring at a snake that is in front of him/ her. Then, out of nowhere, the snake goes for the attack and the rat goes into Neo in the Matrix-like action. It leaps nearly off of the screen in a stunning physical feat, moving quickly out of danger with what appears to be relative ease. The snake doesn’t even come close with this first strike. Then, as the snake mounts another attack, the rat skirts to the side, flips onto its back and appears to just dropkick the snake in the mouth. Amazing. 

Then, later in the video we get the rat scraping some dirt with its back feet, seemingly taunting the snake by kicking a bunch of stuff in the latter’s mouth. It’s then that the rat walks off mostly triumphant, not only having avoided the deadly grips of the snake’s mouth, but also humiliating the reptile in the process. It’s an entire action sequence of a movie that happens in just a few seconds. 

While this snake video has gone viral on the internet, it is actually part of a larger scientific study and you might be disappointed to find out that it is part of a supercut of a couple of different snake and rat interactions. The work is being done by groups associated with a number of different research centers who have been posting the results on ninjarat.org which has to win the award for the coolest name to something that is scientifically based.

They are studying the relationships between predators and prey out in the environment and this one between the kangaroo rat and the snake is part of their findings. According to their website, the kangaroo rat has been nicknamed the ninja rat because of its ability to kick and flip to avoid the rattlesnake attack. That’s the exact thing we were able to witness in the video. The group has its own YouTube channel with some more of its findings and videos, though none have cme close to the virality of the one posted above.

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