The Gazetteers Department

Typholos braminus:-This blind snake with imbricate scale markings grows only to 6 inches in length and is only about an inch in circumference. It looks like an oversized worm, except that it does not have cross circular lines on the body. Local people call it Kadu. Many a time it can be seen inside houses especially during rainy season.

Uropelitis sp:-In the forest and mountain regions one comes across at higher elevations a small snake, 8 inches long, deep brown or black in colour with red and yellow fine dots at the sides. The tail is blunt but it ends into a dorsal rough rhomboid structure with sharp edges meant for digging the soil. They are called rough tails and being rare, have no local names.

Lycodon Aulicus:-This wolf snake is locally known as Kawdya and is found in gardens and near human habitations after the beginning of rainy season. It is two and half feet in length and four inches in girth. It is brown with small longitudinal short bars made up of dots all over the body. The neck region bears one blackish bar on either side extending up to the eyes. This snake lays eggs and feeds on lizards, skinks, small mice and tiny frogs.

Obigodon Venustus:-This grey brown snake with black cross bars across the body, grows to about two feet and is three inches in circumference. It is found more after rains and is often seen in gardens near houses.

Python molurus:-This is known as Python or "Ajgar" in local dialect. Some also call it "Aar". It is not frequently seen and is found near the ghat area of the district. Growing to a length of 18 feet, it often times weighs (when fully grown) about half a maund or more. It is a very lethargic snake, which feeds normally on small mammals, but has been seen to tackle, a sheep, a goat or even a boar. It is deep-brown with bluish white irregular patches on the body and a lancet mark on a pink head. It kills the victim by strangulation.

Natrix Piscator.-This common snake found near water accumulations is seen all over the district. Locally called Parad, it grows to four feet and has checkerboard type black and brown marks on an olive greenish body surface. During rainy season one often comes across this snake. Another variety of Natrix, Natrix stolala, is seen all over the district especially during the rainy season. It is a thin long snake, grey in colour with white and brown marks on the body. The snake is absolutely harmless and could be handled with ease. Locally it is called Naneti or Seeta-ki-Lat.

Dryophis nasutus.-This is the green whip snake which has a parrot green colour and a very pointed head. The body is slender and it grows to 5 feet in length. It is seen overhanging on big trees, and keeping the head in a suspended manner to imitate a twig. The up of the head bears a thin long rostrum and in the middle are eyes with black straight lines indicating a vertical pupil. The bite of this snake is painful but not lethal. It kills birds and lizards on which it feeds. Locally it is called Shelati or Chilli.

Eryx conicous (Durkya Ghonas).-This is locally known as "Mahadol". It has a very blunt tail and the body is deep brown with ash coloured variegated spots. At a glance it looks like the young one of python growing to 2 feet in length. A completely dark variety of this snake slightly bigger in size is met with in darker soils and is known as Eryx Jonni.

Psommophis lungifrons.-This snake grey in colour is deeper behind with black edged scales on the body. Its head is uniformly brown above and yellowish white below. This snake looks like an Echis or " phoorsa " except that it does not "side wind ", nor makes a noise by rubbing the scales. It is also non-poisonous.

Ptyas mucosus.-This long brown snake with black spots between scales especially in the rear region is very agile and grows to about 10 feet in length. It feeds mainly on rats and is thus a friend of the farmers.. A very common snake, known locally as "Dhaman'', which is often handled with ease by many local people. It ties a knot by its tail, emits a foul odour and gives out when cornered a faint kite like sound. It lays fairly big sized eggs in mud during the month of March and the young ones hatch out in June.

Coluber Ventromaculatus.-This snake is light grey above, with a dorsal series of black cross bars or different shaped spots confined to the edges of scales. It has a short black stripe on the uppermost edge of the back and the neck and oblique black bar below the eye and another on the temple. It grows to two and half feet and is locally called "Pandhra Nag".

Goiga trigonata.-This common cat-snake is locally known as "Shelkya". It is light-yellowish above with a uniform series of angular black edged dorsal spots. There is a dark black stripe on the neck running up to the eyes. It raises the head imitating a cobra and throws the body in loops. The black stripes on its side are often mistaken to be binocellate marks. It has no hood and apart from being vicious is an absolutely non-poisonous snake.

Poisonous

Callophis melanurus.-This is the "Raat" snake of the hilly regions. It is light brown above, with scales speckled brown and forming a longitudinal line down the whole length of the body. The head and neck are black above with yellow spots and the tail with two black rings, one at base and another at the up. The lower side of the body is red in live and yellowish in dead specimens. It is a thin small snake hardly growing to 8 or 10 inches in length. It lays eggs and is more seen during rainy Reason. In some regions of this district it is called "Pandhra Nag". The poison of the snake is neurotoxic.

Naja naja.-This is the local cobra which is called "Nag" ordinarily and "Domi" if black and "Gehuwa" if brown. It can be distinguished by the preuse of a hood which it spreads when alarmed. There arc three scales behind the eye; the 4th and the 5th lower lip scales usually have a triangular scale in between. There may be binocellate mark on the hood or there may be no mark at all. This snake is not normally killed. It is exhibited on a "Nag panchmi" day and worshipped in the month of July each year. Many snake charmers collect it, break off the fangs or plug them with glue and show the supposed act of charming by a flute. The snake raises the hood to strike the charmer. This snake prefers cool dark places and many a time it is met with in old building where it gets rats to eat, quietness. warmth of the winter and coolness of the summer. The bite of this snake exhibits neurotoxic poisoning and only a specific antivenin can save the victim, if a proper lethal dose has been injected. It lays eggs in April and these batch in July. The supposed twining of two cobras seen in jungles is the fight between two males.

Russels viper (Vipera russelli).-Locally people call it "Agya Mahadol" or Ghonas. It is four feet in length and has three series of deep brown elliptical marks on its olive body. The bead is triangular with tiny scales. It hisses loudly and continuously. The fanes of this snake are about half an inch long and they are completely hollow like a doctors hypodermic syringe. The venom is vasotoxic and if a lethal dose has been given the patient can be saved only by a specific antivenin. This snake lays about 97 young ones in three days in June.

Echis Carinatus.-This is "Fefrut" or "Phoorsa" as it is called locally. It is rather an uncommon snake growing to 18 inches and bearing a lancet head mark on a brown head and variegated grey marks on a brown body. It moves by side winding, making a noise by rubbing the scales of the neck region. While striking it darts. The venom is vasotoxic and normally given in sublethal doses. The patient does not die soon but starts bleeding from all pores of the body after 24 hours.

Bungarus Caereuleus.-This is locally known as "Dandekar" or "Ghoda Karayat". It is steel blue in colour with thin white cross lines all over the body. The dorsal ssales are hexagonal. This timid snake grows to above 4 feet. It remains hiding in crevices and is seen normally during the night. The venom is very toxic, requiring only 6 milligrams to kill a normal sized person. The only antidote is an injection of a specific antivenin.

In the deep forests one comes across another variety of this Krait snake. It is yellow with thick blue black cross bars and a blunt tail. It feeds on other snakes and is locallv called "Satranjya"-Bungarus fasciatus.

Trimeresurus gramineus.-This tree green snake is met with in bamboo forests. It grows to 2 feet in length, has a triangular head with small scales and remains on the trees hunting lizards, small mammals and sometimes birds.

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