Aquatic coral snake
Aquatic coral snake | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Suborder: | Serpentes |
Family: | Elapidae |
Genus: | Micrurus |
Species: | M. surinamensis
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Binomial name | |
Micrurus surinamensis (Cuvier, 1817)
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The aquatic coral snake (Micrurus surinamensis) is a semiaquatic species of coral snake in the family Elapidae found in northern South America.[1]
Common names
Known as Cobra coral, Coral de agua, Coral acuatica venezolana (For Micrurus nattereri), Coralillo, Coral venenosa, Culebra del agua, Naca-naca, Naca-naca de agua, Boichumbeguaçu, Himeralli, Itinkia, Kraalslang, Koraalslang, Krarasneke, Kraka Sneki and Wata mio.[2]
Description and behavior
M. surinamensis is one of the heaviest and most robust coral snakes, they grow on average 80–100 cm, with a maximum of 135 cm, although there are unproven reports of 180 cm specimens. They are characterized by a long snout, large head, and eyes and nostrils located more dorsally than other coral snakes. The head is mainly red, with sharp black scales, the dorsal scales are thin and shiny, the supra-anal keels are present in males, but little developed. The body has red rings that are separated by 5 to 8 triads, each with a wide middle and two narrow black rings, separated by two narrow cream or yellowish rings.
This species is known to have mainly aquatic habits, swims very well and can remain submerged for a long period, it has mainly nocturnal habits, although it can also be active during the day, it is not aggressive towards humans, when it feels disturbed, it flattens the body and raises the tail. Its reproduction is oviparous, but the size of the brood has not yet been reported, it feeds mainly on
Range and habitat
It is an endemic species in South America, found in
Venom
Studies on
References
- ^ Micrurus surinamensis at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 16 February 2016.
- ^ a b c "WCH Clinical Toxinology Resources". Toxinology.com. Retrieved 2020-11-22.
- ^ a b c "Living Hazards Database (LHD) – Search by Scientific Name" (PDF). Acq.osd.mil. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-07-02. Retrieved 2022-03-30.
- PMID 21225218.