Kraits Cobras Sea Snakes and Relatives: Elapidae - Physical Characteristics, Habitat, Diet, Behavior And Reproduction, North American Coral Snake (micrurus Fulvius): Species Accounts - GEOGRAPHIC RANGE, KRAITS COBRAS SEA SNAKES THEIR RELATIVES AND PEOPLE,
The elapids live in Africa, Asia, Australia, the United States and Mexico, Central America, South America, and the Pacific and Indian Oceans.
More than half of the venomous snake species in the world belong to this family, which includes cobras, mambas, coral snakes, land-living kraits, brown snakes, taipans (TY-pans), death adders, sea kraits, and sea snakes. Some of them are quite deadly to humans. Nonetheless, snake charmers and other people annoy the snakes for entertainment or collect them for their skins, which are used for belt and shoe leather.
The World Conservation Union (IUCN) lists seven species as Vulnerable, which means that they face a high risk of extinction in the wild. Two species are Near Threatened, which means they are at risk of being threatened with extinction in the future. Causes for the declines in their numbers may include loss of their habitats, or preferred living areas, and collecting of snakeskins for leather.
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The cobras, kraits (KRYTS), sea snakes, death adders, and other members of this family are venomous (VEH-nuh-mus), or poisonous, snakes that vary in length from just 7 inches (17.8 centimeters) to 16 feet, 8 inches (5 meters). Despite their many differences, all of the snakes in this family, known as elapids (EH-luh-puds), are alike in some ways. They each have two "fixed" fangs, or …
This large family has species that can live in almost any habitat, from deserts and dry grasslands to rainforests and even oceans. Most of the three hundred species, or types of snakes, in this family live on the ground, but some elapids spend at least part of their time underground, and others live nearly their entire lives in trees or underwater. Some scientists split this family into two: the E…
Elapids eat small mammals, birds, snakes, lizards, frogs, and fishes. Many of them feed on whatever they can find, while others eat only one or two different items. The favorite food of the southern African Rinkhal's cobra, for instance, is toads. Sea snakes find their meals in the coral reefs where most of them live, and they eat mainly fishes, eels, or squids. Most species in this family …
One of the most common myths about elapids is that they can be "charmed," or controlled through playing music. Film clips show snake charmers playing the flute and cobras rising from their baskets because they have been "hypnotized," or put into a trance, by the music. Actually, cobras cannot even hear music. Like all elapids, they can hear low sounds, like the vibratio…
Physical characteristics: This thin snake has a repeated color pattern of narrow yellow, wide red, and wide black bands. A narrow yellow band separates the black and red bands. Adults normally are 18 to 28 inches (45.7 to 71 centimeters) long, but they have been known to grow to more than 4 feet (1.2 meters). Geographic range: North American coral snakes live in the United States and Mexico. Habit…
Physical characteristics: The black-necked spitting cobra may be solid black or brown, or it may be striped with black and white. It has two sharp, thin fangs that it uses to spray its venom. These snakes can reach a length of 79 inches (2 meters). Geographic range: This snake lives in western, central, and southern Africa. Habitat: The black-necked spitting cobra usually lives in grasslands, but …
Physical characteristics: The king cobras are snakes of many colors; they may be black, brown, brownish-green, or yellow. These large snakes usually reach about 9.8 feet (3 meters) in length, but they can grow to 16.4 feet (5 meters). Geographic range: The king cobra lives from India through Southeast Asia (the Philippines and into Indonesia). Habitat: King cobras are animals of the thick jungle a…
Physical characteristics: The death adder has a thick body, with bands of light brown to black. Adults are about 20 to 39 inches (0.5 to 1 meter) long. Geographic range: The death adder is found in Australia. Habitat: Death adders live in dry areas, including grasslands and deserts, in eastern and southern Australia. It also sometimes wanders into cities. Diet: The death adder eats mainly small re…
Physical characteristics: The sea krait is banded with blue or bluish gray and black and has a paddle-shaped tail to help it swim. It also has valves, or flaps, that can close its nostrils, or nose holes, when it goes underwater. Adults are usually about 39 inches (1 meter) long, but some sea kraits can reach 55 inches (1.4 meters) in length. Geographic range: The sea krait is found in New Guinea,…
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