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Wildlife
The snakes of Beijing - a short field guidePosted by Jeremy Goldkorn, July 10, 2007 7:33 PM
In response to an earlier request on Danwei for information about snake species found around Beijing, Chinese blogger Hecaitaou kindly provided a brief guide with links to images in the comments section. His guide was in Chinese; below it is translated into English with a few alterations and comments on the English names of the snakes. The snakes below are apparently common in and around the city of Beijing. Corrections to this guide are of course welcome.
The Short-Tailed Mamushi does not usually attack people, but it's very sluggish, so bites usually happen when people tread on the snakes by mistake. In the Beijing area, they are most commonly found in the mountains west of the city. In recent years there have been frequent reports of snake bites by this snake, a trend that is clearly connected with the expansion of tourist areas and the rising popularity of outdoor sports. NON POISONOUS SNAKES The Dione Ratsnake also known as the Steppes Ratsnake is a common non poisonous snake in northern China. It's a hardy snake that can survive periods without food. This snake is common in all suburbs and counties of Beijing.It is found in rural areas all over northern China, but in small quantities. In the Beijing area is is rarely seen; there have been occasional sightings in Yunmengshan in Huairou, and in the western mountainous aeras of Yanqing and Songshan. There is more about the wildlife of Beijing (mammals) in this post and in the comments to it: Wild animals of Beijing |
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Comments on The snakes of Beijing - a short field guide
Snakes of Beijing? I though you must be talking about people who work in media here!
Your animals in Beijing posts remind me of a quote from the novel Life of Pi that goes something like: If you take the city of Tokyo, turn it upside down and shake it, you'd be surprised as to how many animals you would get. Komodo dragons, tigers, lions, leopards, and even an elephant or two.
Once outside an apt. by the east 4th ring road I saw someone kill a wild snake with a brick, then take it away to be eaten.
The mamushi is definitely a type of pit viper. you can tell by looking at the distinctive "chipmunk" cheeks of the head. Those are the venom pits where venom is made and accumulated.
One bite and you're a goner, buddy.
Check out what we do to snakes here in Fujian: http://www.benross.net/wordpress/?p=64
Just saw a thing on BTV about some David's ratsnake that was rescued from a well...
The English name of Rhabdophis tigrinus is the Tiger Keelback.
Hi,
I was walking in a gorge about 2 hours north of Beijing yesterday and saw the tail end of a snake. It was close to a stream at 1pm.
I've been trying to find out what this beautiful creature is, but I can't find a photo or description that is like it.
It was dark grey/black with two wide orangey red stripes down the sides. The stripes didn't have sharp edges, just blended back into the black. I saw about 3 feet of him and judging by his thickness, I would guess he was 5 - 6 feet in length.
He looked a lot like an Australian Red Bellied Black Snake, except with the red part on the sides, not the underside.
Can anyone help identify it?
Thanks.
Hi,
I was walking in a gorge about 2 hours north of Beijing yesterday and saw the tail end of a snake. It was close to a stream at 1pm.
I've been trying to find out what this beautiful creature is, but I can't find a photo or description that is like it.
It was dark grey/black with two wide orangey red stripes down the sides. The stripes didn't have sharp edges, just blended back into the black. I saw about 3 feet of him and judging by his thickness, I would guess he was 5 - 6 feet in length.
He looked a lot like an Australian Red Bellied Black Snake, except with the red part on the sides, not the underside.
Can anyone help identify it?
Thanks.