Becoming Opaque: Ecdysis, Vision, and Shedding Selves
Snakes are rivers of skin, cells sloughing off, shrugged off soon after they flower, flowing into and out of a self that is a sluice of snow melt, a perpetual thaw, seeking never to end the cursive loop of its bodily signature. This process of shedding is technically known as “ecdysis”, coming from the Ancient Greek ἐκδύω (ekduo) 'to take off, strip off'. Prior to shedding their skin, snakes experience a period of visual disturbance, their eyes appearing milky blue as a special subdermal lubricant coats the inner skin to protect the snake during the shedding process. The lubricant is a filter that shields the eyes while also rendering the snake temporarily blind. During this “pre-shed” period, the entire body of the snake may lose color or darken as it approaches the shed and the snake is called “opaque”.