Collared dwarf snake
| Collared dwarf snake | ||||||||||||
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A collared dwarf snake ( Eirenis collaris ) |
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Eirenis collaris | ||||||||||||
| ( Ménétries , 1832) |
The collared dwarf snake ( Eirenis collaris ) is a species of snake from the adder family and lives in western Asia.
features
The collared dwarf snake is a delicate, pencil-thin snake with round pupils. It reaches a total length of up to 35 cm. The small head is hardly separated from the body. The base color is yellow-brown, sand-colored or olive-gray on top. Characteristic are a wide, dark transverse band in the neck area and two dark spots on the occiput. The drawing may fade with age. The underside is monochrome whitish to yellowish. 15 smooth scales run around the middle of the back, the back scales are often darkly edged.
It differs from the closely related dwarf snake ( Eirenis modestus ) in that it has 15 instead of 17 back scales around the middle of the body and the lack of a yellowish edge on the back of the neck band.
distribution
The European area reaches this species only in the eastern Caucasus , on the western edge of the Caspian Sea in the Republic of Dagestan in Russia and in the northeast of Azerbaijan . To the south of this, the species sparsely populated the area from eastern Turkey to northern Iraq and southwest Iran , where the southernmost locality is near Shiraz . The species also occurs in Georgia and Armenia .
habitat
From the west bank of the Caspian Sea to an altitude of 1500 to 1600 m above sea level. The subspecies E. c. macrospilotus was even found at an altitude of 2500 m. The species inhabits stony steppe landscapes with dry slopes that are loosely overgrown with bushes and grasses.
Way of life
The collared dwarf snake is a hidden, crepuscular species that often hides under stones during the day.
The animals hibernate for several months, which can be interrupted as early as February / March on sunny days. When mating, the male pursues the female for a longer period of time. Even after copulation, the animals often remain intertwined with one another for a long time. In June / July the female lays 4–8 eggs which are 17–19 mm long and from which the young hatch in August / September.
The diet consists mostly of arachnids such as scorpions and spiders. Millipedes, centipedes and insects are also preyed on.
Danger
The IUCN lists the species as not endangered ( least concern ) with a stable population. The species can be quite common in suitable habitats. In Dagestan, for example, up to 3.8 individuals per 100 m² were found in stony areas.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Eirenis collaris in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species .
- ↑ Dieter Glandt: The amphibians and reptiles of Europe: All kinds in portrait. 2nd, updated and expanded edition. Quelle & Meyer, Wiebelsheim 2015, ISBN 978-3-494-01581-1 , p. 596.
literature
- Dieter Glandt: The amphibians and reptiles of Europe: All kinds in portrait. 2nd, updated and expanded edition. Quelle & Meyer, Wiebelsheim 2015, ISBN 978-3-494-01581-1 , pp. 594-596.
Web links
- Eirenis collaris in The Reptile Database . Edited by: P. Uetz, P. Freed & J. Hošek, 1995–2020. Accessed August 21, 2020.