Barred Wolf Snake (Lycodon striatus) | Snake | Wildkeeda
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| Barred Wolf Snake (Lycodon striatus) |
Barred Wolf Snake
Lycodon striatus (Shaw, 1802)
NON VENOMOUS
Maximum 488mm (19in)
Description
Slender-bodied: smooth-scaled. Flattened head slightly broader than neck, snout broad, projects beyond lower jaw. Eye entirely black. Glossy blackish-brown back has white, ochre or yellow cross-bands that widen on sides to enclose triangular spots. Bands may be less distinct towards tail. White collar (sometimes faint) usually present. Lip scales and undersides white. Specimens from Maharashtra have white bands with yellow (usually diamond-shaped) mid-spots and are often mistaken for the Yellow-spotted Wolf Snake. indian snake species
Lycodon striatus Dark brown or blackish above with white cross-bars expanding laterally and dorsally, on the anterior side of the body the expansions enclose triangular spots; on the posterior part the bars are narrower and closer; a white bar on the nape present or absent upper lips and lower parts uniform white.
Scalation
Lycodon striatus Scales in 17:17: 15 rows, smooth. Ventrals (south of lat. 20°) 154-166. (north of lat. 20°) 163-195; anal divided; subcaudals paired (south of lat. 20°) 35-50, (north of lat. 20°) 44-58. Loreal 1. touches internasal: preocular 1: postoculars 2: temporals 2+3, rarely 1+2: supralabials 8 (3 to 5th touching eye).
Behavior
Nocturnal. Usually terrestrial. Eats geckos and skinks. Lays 2-4 eggs in August Both male and female have been found together with eggs. Unlike the Common Wolf Snake, not temperamental and usually does not bite when handled.
Barred Wolf Snake lives in scrub forest below rock boulders, rotten logs and near human habitation in the cracks on walls, in gardens and in agricultural fields. Found in plains and in hills up to 2000 feet altitude. Timid in disposition; makes no endeavor to escape butcoils itself, if touched or teased and hides the head beneath its coiled body; 2-6 eggs are laid of size 25mm x 7mm during July-August. Diet: geckos, other lizards and probably frogs.
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| Barred Wolf Snake : Lycodon striatus |
Distribution
India Most of Peninsular India. From Jammu & Kashmir (Jammu), Himachal Pradesh (Shimla) and Punjab in the north to Gujarat in the west: Uttar Pradesh (Agra) east to Jharkhand (Chota Nagpur) and Orissa: from Maharashtra through Karnataka, south to Tamil Nadu. Also Pakistan. Nepal, and Sri Lanka.
Look alikes
Yellow spotted Wolf Snake. Travancore Wolf Snake. Common Krait.
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