animal stories

AGENCIES

Blue Coral snakes are beautiful but highly venomous snakes found in Malaysia. These snakes are also known as Blue Malaysian Coral snakes. They have bright blue bodies with orange undersides, head and tails. They have slender body but can move very fast.

As defence, they display their bright red. When disturbed, they hide their head by coiling up their body and raise their tail to reveal their startling coral red belly. They have neurotoxic venom in their two front teeth.. Initially, there are no effects after a bite for several minutes. After sometime, the victim will have numbness and then difficulty in breathing. The victim finally dies due to respiratory failure.

Characteristics

The body of Blue Coral snakes is dark blue, with a lighter blue stripe along each side. Their head, tail and ventral surface are bright red. They have small eyes at the sides of their blunt head. Their front fangs are set at a 45 degree angle and are actually large in proportion to their head.

Blue Malayan Coral snakes are mostly active at night. They are timid snakes during daytime and tend to avoid confrontation. Most of the people get bitten during the night if they enter their territory. Female coral snakes lay two to18 eggs. The group of eggs is called clutch. Females lay eggs in rotten logs, under rocks, and in small tunnels. They lay eggs in places where predators are unlikely to find them. They may lay eggs in more than one place. The eggs are soft and white or yellow in colour. The eggs hatch in one to two months of time. Coral snakes are born with a supply of venom. They know how to hunt and swallow food.

Size

Blue Coral snakes are about five feet long.

Feeding Habits

They feed on other snakes, including their own kind. They occasionally consume lizards, frogs and birds.

Habitat

These snakes are found in western Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. They live in primary forest floors, but can also be found in mature secondary forest.

Lifespan

They live for about 10 to 15 years.