Two-tone bonito - description of where it lives, features

A very long time ago, many terrestrial representatives of the fauna left the land and moved to the sea. It should be noted that they have remarkably adapted to living in salt water. Water snake, belonging to the species two-colored bonito, is a permanent inhabitant of the vast expanses of water. It can never be seen on land, because it never crawls out of the water. This representative of the serpent kingdom has a pronounced maneuverability and can move not only forward, but also backward. Any art with which it moves in the thickness of the water surface will surely envy any professional swimmer.

These snakes rest in groups. It is very interesting to watch such an action. They lower their tail and head or are in the place where there is enough algae. There they lie in wait for their prey. Pelamide has a rather powerful tail, with the help of which it is able to hold various objects that float in water for a long time. A case is described in the literature when a bonito held a lantern with its tail for a long time, its weight was 8 kg.

Under water, this snake can calmly stay up to 90 minutes, however, it goes hunting to surface waters.

External data

The snake is medium in size. Its length usually does not exceed 1 meter. The body is covered with rows of scales, the total number of which reaches 47-69 pieces. On the inside, the snake is covered with abdominal shields, the number of which can reach 406 pieces. A two-color snake is called because its body is double-colored. The upper part is characterized by the presence of dark tones. The lower surface of the body is yellow in color, which creates a pronounced distinct contrast. Transverse rings over the entire surface of the body form a peculiar pattern. It was not by chance that nature gave the snake such a coloring. She is intimidating.

The tail is characterized by the presence of light tones with the presence of large black spots. From the sides you can observe the presence of a toothed pattern. It should be noted that various individuals belonging to this species have pronounced color variability. It should be said that in size the females are slightly larger than the males.

When the snake, while in ambush, nevertheless catches its prey, it tries to kill it immediately. Her poison helps her in this, which is characterized by a neurotoxic effect. The poison is very toxic. For the victim, the lethal dose is only 130 mg / kg body weight. For humans, snake venom is also deadly. Another thing is that bonito when meeting with a person does not show even the slightest signs of aggression. But in order not to provoke an attack by a bonito on a person, one should not get too close to it.

How dangerous is a snake?

In terms of toxicity, the pelamide venom is superior to cobra. Just one small drop is enough to kill three adult men. The action of the poison is associated with paralysis of the respiratory center. A man simply can not breathe if he was bitten by this snake. In addition, there is simply hellish pain in all muscle groups. It is characteristic that even after the introduction of the antidote, this pain persists for a long time.

Features

Of course, the snake has its own enemies. Protection from them is provided by the odorous secret produced by the anal glands. The place of its accumulation is an elongated sac, in which there is no sphincter. The secret is released spontaneously when danger is approaching.

It is interesting to observe how bonito molt. It is as if tied into a knot and begins to rub against each other by different parts of the body.

Breeding

Distribution and Subspecies

It is safe to say that of all sea snakes, two-colored bonito has the widest distribution area. Its habitats are the Indian and Pacific Ocean, the coast of the African continent. It was possible to meet her in Russian territorial waters. This could be observed at a time when sea water became much warmer. This helps to attract a large number of southern fish, for example, sardines, Iwashi, and they, as you know, make up the feed base of bonito.

There are no subspecies of this snake
The difference between bonito and other land snakes is its bright color. This species can be distinguished from similar marine representatives by the way the nostrils and scutes are located.