Description ³

INTRODUCTION

• Non Venomous
• Other names : Dumeril's Black Headed Snake, Jerdon's Many-toothed Snake.
• One of the smallest colubrids of peninsular India.

IDENTIFICATION

• Small, slender body with smooth scales and greenish yellow body and patternless tail with pointed tip.
• Grayish brown dorsal with discontinuous series of black dots along vertebra.
• Distinct black colored head with yellow patterns and a white collar.

DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT

• Widespread throughout India but not so commonly seen.
• Inhabit forests, scrub forests, rocky terrain in both hills and plains.
• Hide in insect holes, cracks, leaf litter and loose soil and roots.

DIET AND BEHAVIOR

• Feed on skinks, small geckos, other snakes and larvae while young.
• Semi-fossorial snakes hunting under leaf litter and loose roots.
• Nocturnal and crepuscular species.
• Very fast, alert and quick to escape. Tries to hide in narrow spaces.
• Non-offensive and no signs of aggressive behavior observed.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Alex Krohn, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-SA), uploaded by Alex Krohn
2. (c) Vinay Gogula, all rights reserved, uploaded by Vinay Gogula
3. (c) Vinay Gogula, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• Animal Diversity Web
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HerpMapper
• Snake Database
• The Reptile Database
• VertNet

iNat Map