Non-threatening African snakes

At Snake Park in Nairobi, Kenya, there are a number of non-threatening African snakes, such as the Mt Kenya Bush Viper, the East African Garter Snake, and the African Rock Python.

The Mt Kenya Bush Viper (Atheris desaixi) is a black and yellow snake with a thick body and broad head. It grows up to 70 centimetres (27.5 inches).

It lives in bushland and forests between 1500-1700 metres above sea level – specifically and endemically to the south-east of Mt Kenya and the Nyambeni Hills.

The tree viper is active day and night. They have live young.

Their venom is unlikely to be deadly because one reported case of a snake bite only caused pain and swelling. It eats small animals.

The East African Garter Snake (Elapsoidea loveridgei) has had no reported fatalities, although details are unknown. The snake bite cases that are known only caused local pain and swelling.

The East African Garter Snake is a glossy with a short head. It is black with 19-36 bands of white, white and pink, or yellow. It grows up to 65 centimetres (23.5 inches).

The garter snake like mid-altitude woodlands from 600-1200 metres above sea level. It is slow moving and lives in holes underground. It lays eggs. It eats other snakes, lizards, reptile eggs, frogs, and small rodents.

The African Rock Python (Python sebae natalensis) squeezes small mammals to death before swallowing. It is a huge, long, thick snake with a triangular head. It can grow from 5-9 metres (16-30 feet) long.

The rock python lives around the coast, grasslands, and woodlands. It lays eggs in bushes, under rocks, or in moist holes.

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

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