Angolan Garter Snake
- Elapsoidea semiannulata
- IUCN Status: Least Concern
- Threat: harmless
- Venom/Toxin: none
- Trend: unconfirmed
General Information
The Angolan garter snake (Elapsoidea semiannulata) is a species of snake of the family Elapidae.
Description
It has a maximum recorded length of 53.2 cm snout-vent length (male) and 46.7 cm (female) (Branch 1998).
Fun Facts
Garter snakes are effectively non-venomous for humans but have a very mild venom-like saliva for hunting small prey. They pose no danger to people.
Ecology & Behaviour
This nocturnal, terrestrial species is partly fossorial, and shelters within crevices or beneath vegetation during the day, and is most active following rain (Trape and Mané 2006).
Diet
It hunts lizards, snakes and amphisbaenians (worm lizards) (Trape and Mané 2006).
Reproduction
The female lays up to 10 small eggs (Branch 1998).
Distribtion & Habitat
The Angolan garter snake is found in central Africa in Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Congo, The Democratic Republic of the, Côte d’Ivoire, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Mauritania, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Togo and Zambia.
This snake is found in savanna and forest from the dry Sudan-Sahel climatic zone to the humid Guinean tropics (Trape and Mané 2006). It has been recorded in Zambia from the Kalahari sands, where it may favour savanna and woodland (Broadley et al. 2003).
References
Share:
- Phylum: Chordata
- Class: Reptilia
- Order: Squamata
- Suborder: Serpentes
- Family: Elapidae
- Genus: Elapsoidea
- Length: up to 53.2 cm
