
25 cm specimen from mangrove habitat,
Singapore.
Family : COLUBRIDAE
Species : Gerarda prevostiana
Maximum Size : 53 cm
References : H1, H3
Link : Aquatic Snakes of Southeast Asia, Field
Museum of Natural History ...
follow this
link
Thanks to Sohan Shetty |
This unassuming snake
inhabits coastal habitats, particularly mangroves, where it feeds on small
fish and soft-bodied crabs.
The dorsal surface is
generally brown in colour, but sometimes greyish. The lower scale rows and
ventral scales are white or pale yellow, as are the labial scales (those
lining the lips) and chin. As with other water snakes, such as the
Dog-faced Water Snake, the head is
barely distinct from the body, and the small eyes are located towards the
top of the head.
It ranges from India, Sri
Lanka and Bangladesh to Burma, Thailand, the Malay Peninsular and Singapore.
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| Close-ups showing the pale-coloured
labial and chin scales, and the shape of the head. |
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