Taiwan Beauty Snake

ORDER: Squamata

FAMILY: Colubridae

GENUS: Elaphe

SPECIES: taeniurus friesei

DESCRIPTION:

Color variable, usually light and dark shades of brown and yellow. Anterior part of the snake is patterned with splotches and banding while the tail has just stripes.

GEOGRAPHICAL RANGE AND HABITAT:

Forests of Taiwan.

DIET:

Rodents and birds. Kills by constriction.

LIFE CYCLE/SOCIAL STRUCTURE:

Oviparous. Lays 4 to 5 white eggs. Incubation lasts approximately 70 to 75 days.

SPECIAL ADAPTATIONS:

Ratsnakes defend themselves vigorously when threatened by drawing the forepart of the body into an impressive “S” loop and rapidly vibrating the tail. Ratsnakes are good tree climbers; keels on their scutes aid in climbing.

INTERPRETIVE INFORMATION::

The genus Elaphe consists of a loosely-associated group of large, powerful constrictors known as “rat snakes”. Rat snakes are found over much of North America, Europe and Asia. These colorful, normally large serpents are significant predators within their natural environments. Elaph taeniura, the well-known “beauty snake” is widely distributed through out China, Burma, Laos, and Assam. (E. t. friesi is considered a subspecies.) These colorful snakes probably owe their wide distribution to the fact that they are often kept in houses as a means of rodent control. It is one of the most commonly bred snakes in Europe and U.S. breeders are rapidly raising more of this species, as the snake matures quickly, breeds readily, and is generally docile.

OUR ANIMALS:

1 Male.

STATUS IN THE WILD:

Not endangered.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

1. Martin, Kristi. “Reptiles of Oakland Zoo” talk given January 23, 1999.
2. Mehrtens, John. 1987. Living Snakes of the World. Sterling, Publishing, NY, pp. 83, 106.
3. Schulz and Scheidt. 1992. “An Introduction to the Indonesian Rat Snakes of the Genus Elaphe” in The Vivarium, Vol. 4, No. 2.