Philodryas olfersii facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Philodryas olfersii |
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Philodryas
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olfersii
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The Philodryas olfersii is a type of snake found in South America. It is sometimes called the Lichtenstein's green racer or South American green racer. This snake belongs to the Colubridae family. It is known to be a venomous snake, though its bites are usually not as dangerous as those from other venomous snakes.
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Snake Names
This snake has a few different common names. People often call it the Lichtenstein's green racer. Other names include the South American green racer and the eastern green whiptail.
Why the Name olfersii?
The second part of its scientific name, olfersii, honors a German naturalist named Ignaz von Olfers. Naturalists are scientists who study nature.
Where It Lives
The Philodryas olfersii snake lives in the southern parts of South America. You can find it in countries like northern Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, and northwestern Paraguay.
What It Looks Like
This snake can grow to be about 1 to 1.5 meters long. That's about 40 to 60 inches, which is roughly the height of a tall person.
Its back is a bright green color. Its belly, however, is yellowish. The scales on its back are smooth. They are arranged in 19 rows around the middle of its body.
Its Home Environment
The Philodryas olfersii can live in many different places. It likes areas such as the Cerrado (a type of savanna), Caatinga (a dry forest), and regular forests. It can also be found in places where forests are changing. This snake lives from sea level up to about 1,700 meters (5,577 feet) high.
How It Behaves
This snake often spends its time in trees. This is called being arboreal. However, it also hunts for food on the ground. It is active during the day, which means it is diurnal. Sometimes, though, it has been seen mating late in the evening.
What It Eats
The Philodryas olfersii is a predator. It hunts and eats various small animals. Its diet includes small rodents, lizards, amphibians (like frogs), and birds. It especially likes to eat baby birds in their nests. It will even eat other snakes, sometimes ones nearly as big as itself!
Reproduction
The Philodryas olfersii lays eggs. This is called being oviparous. Each egg is about 5 centimeters (about 2 inches) long. A female snake usually lays between 4 and 11 eggs at a time. Larger female snakes tend to lay more eggs than smaller ones.
About Its Venom
Snakes in the Philodryas group are not always thought of as highly venomous. However, the Philodryas olfersii is a venomous snake. There have been reports of people getting bitten and needing medical help.
When this snake bites, it uses special grooved teeth at the back of its mouth. It has to "chew" its venom into its prey. This is different from many other venomous snakes, like vipers, which have fangs at the front of their mouths that inject venom quickly. Because of this, the Philodryas olfersii sometimes gives a "dry bite" without injecting much venom.
The most common signs of a bite are pain, swelling, redness, and bruising. You might also feel a pulsing or numbness where you were bitten. Sometimes, bruising can spread far from the bite area.
The venom from this snake can damage muscles. It contains different types of toxins, which are harmful substances. Even though it can cause problems, bites from Philodryas olfersii are usually not very serious. This is because the snake has trouble injecting a lot of venom.
In rare cases, if someone is bitten for a long time, more venom can be injected. This can lead to more serious symptoms like severe swelling and problems with blood clotting. It's important to get medical attention if you are bitten by any snake.
Tiny Hitchhikers (Parasites)
The Philodryas olfersii can be a host to tiny living things called protozoans. These are like very small parasites. One new type of protozoan, called Caryospora olfersii, was found living in this snake. It has also been found carrying another type called C. braziliensis.
Different Types of Philodryas olfersii
Some experts believe there is only one type of Philodryas olfersii. However, others recognize three slightly different kinds, which are called subspecies:
- Philodryas olfersii herbeus (named by Wied in 1825)
- Philodryas olfersii latirostris (named by Cope in 1862)
- Philodryas olfersii olfersii (named by Lichtenstein in 1825)
Images for kids
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A Philodryas olfersii snake.
See also
In Spanish: Philodryas olfersii para niños
