EPOW - Ecology Picture of the Week

Explanation:   Beware the jewel that bites.  This is the Oriental tiger snake, a truly beautiful snake found in southern Asia and the Far East. 

Tiger snakes belong to the large snake family Colubridae.  About a fourth of the over 600 species in this family have fangs or enlarged and grooved maxillary teeth.  The tiger snake, though, is only one of four members of Colubridae that have caused human fatalities from venomous bites using its rear fangs fed by toxic nuchal glands.

Tiger snakes can be locally common and grow to 3.5 feet (110 cm). They inhabit damp areas of deciduous or mixed conifer-hardwood forests near water, so watch your step along those streams.  Tiger snakes feed mostly on frogs,  toads, and tadpoles, and occasionally fish.

Also called (European) grass snakes, Japanese water snake, and tiger keelbacks, Oriental tiger snakes are hosts for intestinal trematode tapeworm parasites (sparganum) that can be transmitted to humans and other mammals.  Transmission to people, as has been documented in Korea, likely occurs not from bites but only when people consume poorly-cooked snakes.  

Happy Birthday to EPOW !

Happy birthday to us.  EPOW is one year old.
Thanks for being a part of EPOW
and enjoying our natural world.