As children, we saw the mean Kaa slithering about in trees in Jungle Book - but did you ever wonder how a huge and heavy animal devoid of limbs could could climb up a tree trunk in the first place? The following video posted on YouTube by Cosmopolitans clears the mystery up.

A study published by Biology Letters found that the force geneartaed by the snake to grip onto the trunk is actually three times the amount necessary to support its body weight and give it sufficient grip to ascend the trunk. Researchers concluded that this significant increase in force output by the snake was a safety precaution.

[H/T National Geographic]