European cat snake
| European cat snake | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Telescopus fallax from Malta | |
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Subphylum: | Vertebrata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Colubridae |
| Genus: | Telescopus |
| Species: | T. fallax |
| Binomial name | |
| Telescopus fallax (Fleischmann, 1831) | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
The European cat snake (Telescopus fallax), also known as the Soosan snake, is a venomous colubrid snake endemic to the Mediterranean and Caucasus regions.
Geographic range
It occurs in Italy, Greece (Paros, Antiparos, Tourlos, Crete, Kalymnos, Samos, Milos, Corfu), Albania, coastal Slovenia, Croatia (including some Adriatic islands), Herzegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia, southern Bulgaria, Turkey, Malta, Cyprus, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, Israel, southern Russia (Caucasus, Dagestan), Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan. It also appears on "Christian" volcano, near Santorini and belongings to its volcanic formation.
Description and Behavior
The snake is a venomous species, but it is considered no threat to humans because it is rear-fanged and does not possess the ability to deliver the venom to humans, It can and does, however, use the grooved fangs at the back of its upper jaw to inject venom sufficient to kill its principal prey.
Diet
The European Cat Snake feeds mainly on geckos and lizards.
To kill its prey, the cat snake injects a sufficient amount of venom into its prey and will quite happily let its prey run away and die. The snake will just follow and find its prey by tasting the air around it and finding the path its dying prey took. It will then swallow the dead/paralyzed prey whole, headfirst.
References
SCIBERRAS, A. (2004) The Contribution of Maltese Reptiles to Agriculture. MCAST link issue 9 pg6.
- ↑ Aram Agasyan, Aziz Avci, Boris Tuniyev, Jelka Crnobrnja Isailovic, Petros Lymberakis, Claes Andrén, Dan Cogalniceanu, John Wilkinson, Natalia Ananjeva, Nazan Üzüm, Nikolai Orlov, Richard Podloucky, Sako Tuniyev, Uğur Kaya, Wolfgang Böhme, Rastko Ajtic, Varol Tok, Ismail H. Ugurtas, Murat Sevinç, Pierre-André Crochet, Ahmad Mohammed Mousa Disi, Souad Hraoui-Bloquet, Riyad Sadek, Yehudah Werner, Idriz Haxhiu (2009). "Telescopus fallax". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved March 22, 2013.
Further reading
- Arnold EN, Burton JA. 1978. A Field Guide to the Reptiles and Amphibians of Britain and Europe. London: Collins. 272 pp. + Plates 1-40.
ISBN 0-00-219318-3. (Telescopus fallax, pp. 207-210 + Plate 38, Figures 4a, 4b + Map 120). - Fleischmann FL. 1831. Dalmatiae Nova Serpentum Genera. Erlangen, Germany: C. Heyder. 35 pp. (Tarbophis fallax, new species, p. 18).
External links
- Video of Telescopus fallax on YouTube
- Video of Telescopus fallax on YouTube
- Movement of Telescopus fallax on YouTube
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