Red whip snake


The red whip snake or collared dwarf racer is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. Native to the Middle East, its natural habitats are Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, rocky areas, arable land, pastureland, plantations, and rural gardens.

Description

The red whip snake is a slender, long-tailed snake that grows to a length of in Europe but up to in the eastern part of its range in Asia. It closely resembles Dahl's whip snake but differs in having a smaller, flatter head. The upper surface is reddish-brown or reddish grey, with a dark band with pale margins on the neck and scattered, smaller dark bands with pale rims on the fore-parts, these markings being more widely spaced than those of Dahl's whip snake. Another distinguishing feature is the fact that the scales on the belly of that species have a keel on each side whereas the belly scales on the red whip snake do not. The eye is surrounded by a ring of pale skin and the area of skin in front of and behind this is dark. The underparts are whitish-yellow.

Distribution and habitat

The red whip snake is native to Bulgaria, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestinian Territory, Syria, and Turkey. It is typically found on dry rocky areas such as coastal plains with low scrub, bushes and other vegetation. It is also found on agricultural land and in gardens, and its altitudinal range is from sea level up to.

Behaviour

The red whip snake is a diurnal species. It can move very rapidly, running at prey and grabbing it with its jaws. It feeds mostly on lizards, with large insects supplementing the diet. Females lay clutches of three to five cylindrical eggs long and wide.

Status

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature has listed the red whip snake as being of least conservation concern. This is on the basis that the population trend is steady, the snake has a large total population spread out over a wide range, it is common in many areas and tolerates some degree of habitat modification. It does not seem to face any particular threats although in some areas it is persecuted by humans.