There may be trouble ahead

I was just sizing up the dragon for a shot when look what slithered out from beneath a banana leaf, my first snake sighting this year and what a beauty. I only managed two clicks before it was gone. It was not after the dragon, that was just coincidence.

The banana trees that fell in last week's storm had been chopped up and dumped the other side of the ditch, and this is where I found the snake, perfect hunting grounds for bugs and small mammals.

The only other time I have spotted this snake was last August, when it slithered from under the pond fence and moved along the path ahead of me. I gave chase and managed a couple of shots, but although they were good enough to get an ID, the shot was not blip material.

Identification - Rhabdophis subminiatus, red necked keelback.

Until very recently, this snake was considered to be quite harmless and very popular as a pet. It does not have those dangerous twin fangs at the front of the jaws associated with venomous snakes. This is a colubrid snake (back-fanged snake) which has no venom apparatus for injecting venom into its victims, but instead, its Duvernoy's glands secrete a mixture of coagulation enzymes into the saliva which is injected into the victim by grooved fangs.

A pet owner was bitten on the finger, but not wanting to hurt the snake by pulling free, the snake held his finger for two minutes, way more than the couple of seconds that is required for the poison to be released to enter the puncture wound. The guy survived, but not before spending two weeks in intensive care.

The snake was then evaluated and discovered to be extremely dangerous, having the same toxicity as the Banded Krait which is a very deadly snake.

The red necked keelback is found around ponds were it feeds on frogs and small fish, making my safari grounds perfect habitat with the stream, ponds and wet paddy fields. I just have to make sure that it doesn't get to hold on when it bites me - shouldn't be a problem as I run down the path squealing like a girl.

Dave