These snakes are characterized by fangs located near the rear of the mouth. Unlike that of most of its relatives, however, the venom of the Bird Snake is quite potent, causing massive internal bleeding and lesions under the skin. A special serum was developed to combat its. Like all other members of its family, however, after biting it clings to its prey until the venom has taken affect. This species has particularly good vision, perhaps even binocular. Its colorization helps disguise it as a twig.
Although the bird snake is docile by nature and rarely bites, it should be avoided as much as possible. It has quite possibly the most potent venom of any snake in Africa, and the snake is greatly feared for that reason.
The Bird Snake is extremely poisonous; its deadly venom causes some human deaths in its range.
It probably helps to control the population of arboreal rodents and lizards, playing a key role in the food web.
The arboreal Bird Snake eats any small animal found in the trees, preferring lizards but also taking mice or frogs when possible. Despite its name, it seldom feeds on birds.
Southern Tanzania to Mozambique and Zimbabwe, south to Transvaal to northern Botswana into South West Africa and into Angola.
Biogeographic Regions: ethiopian (Native )
The bird snake lives all of its life in trees.
Terrestrial Biomes: scrub forest
This oviparous species lays six to ten eggs in mid-summer. The eggs are four centimeters long by two centimeters wide. The young hatch months later at a length of 25 cm.
The forest vine snake (Thelotornis kirtlandii), also known commonly as the twig snake and the bird snake (as are other members of the genus Thelotornis), is a species of venomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to Africa.
The specific name, kirtlandii, is in honor of American naturalist Jared Potter Kirtland.[2]
T. kirtlandii is found in Sub-Saharan Africa, south to a latitude of about 17° S. It has been recorded from Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Congo, DR Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, and Zambia.[1]
T. kirtlandii is known to eat small birds.
T. kirtlandii is oviparous.[1]
The forest vine snake (Thelotornis kirtlandii), also known commonly as the twig snake and the bird snake (as are other members of the genus Thelotornis), is a species of venomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to Africa.
