Shaw's dark ground snake facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Shaw's dark ground snake |
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| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Erythrolamprus
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| Species: |
melanotus
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| Subspecies | |
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| Synonyms | |
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The Shaw's dark ground snake (Erythrolamprus melanotus) is a type of snake found in northern South America. People also call it Shaw's black-backed snake. In Spanish, it has cool names like candelilla, guarda caminos, and reinita cazadora. This snake belongs to the Colubridae family, which is a very large group of snakes.
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How the Snake Got Its Name
The English names for E. melanotus come from a British scientist named George Kearsley Shaw. He was a biologist who first described this snake in 1802. When a scientist "describes" a new species, it means they are the first to officially study it and give it a scientific name.
Snake Family Tree
Erythrolamprus melanotus is part of the Erythrolamprus group, also known as a genus. This group has more than 50 different kinds of snakes! The Erythrolamprus genus is part of a bigger group called Dipsadinae, which is a subfamily of snakes. Sometimes, Dipsadinae is even considered its own family, Dipsadidae.
Scientists use something called a cladogram to show how different species are related. It's like a family tree for animals! Here's how some Erythrolamprus species from northern South America, like those in Venezuela, are related based on their DNA:
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What Does It Look Like?
The Shaw's dark ground snake can grow to be about 43 centimeters (about 17 inches) long, including its tail.
Its back, also called the dorsum, is usually light yellow or pinkish. It has a wide, dark stripe down its back, which is outlined by thin whitish stripes. Next to these, there are more thin dark stripes. The top of its head is olive green, and a dark stripe goes right through its eye. The scales around its mouth (called upper labials) and its belly (called the venter) are whitish.
The scales on its back are smooth and have tiny pits at the tip. They are arranged in 17 rows around the middle of its body.
Behavior and Diet
This snake is diurnal, which means it is active during the day. It hunts for food on the forest floor. Its diet includes:
- Small spectacled lizards (from the Bachia genus)
- The rain frog (Pristimantis urichi)
- The puddle frog (Engystomops pustulosus)
- The gecko (Gonatodes vittatus)
- Different kinds of fish
Reproduction and Life Cycle
The Shaw's dark ground snake is oviparous. This means that the female snake lays eggs, and the baby snakes hatch from these eggs.
Where It Lives
You can find E. melanotus in several countries in South America, including Colombia, Venezuela, and Trinidad and Tobago. It might have once lived in Grenada, but it's probably not there anymore. When a species is "extirpated" from an area, it means it no longer lives there, even though it might still exist somewhere else in the world.
Its Home (Habitat)
This snake prefers to live in certain natural places, called habitats. These include:
- Freshwater wetlands (areas where the land is covered by water, like swamps or marshes)
- Forests
- Savannas (grassy plains with scattered trees)
It can be found in these habitats at different heights, from sea level up to about 2,000 meters (about 6,560 feet) above sea level.
