Many spotted Snake
(Amplorhinus multimaculatus)
Delana & I were sat in camp at Ndumu, enjoying some downtime, when we heard a loud plop of something soft, hitting the ground. The sound came from a tree about 30 m away from us. We both went to investigate & were amazed by what we found! There was quite a large green snake devouring a Chameleon, which was still alive & struggling. The snake must have ambushed its prey on a branch much higher up & when it struck & caught it both tumbled to the ground.
A sighting such as this is a rare event indeed!
The Chameleon was struggling valiantly,
but to no avail.
as the snake struggled to get a firmer grip.
off the ground, in order for its prey to be
swallowed more easily.
But what kind of snake was it? Both of us had never seen anything looking like this snake before. A quick look in the field guide produced the answer. A Many Spotted Snake sometimes known as the Many Spotted Reed Snake. It is found in the eastern part of South Africa & eastern Zimbabwe. There is a separate population in the Cape region. It is a slow moving diurnal snake preying on frogs, small rodents & even Chameleons! It is mildly poisonous & quick to strike when threatened, but its poison is not harmful to humans.
This snake comes in two basic color forms: dark grey to black or the bright green version, which this individual was. It is often found in wetlands hence the alternative name of reed snake, but has wide habitat tolerance including fynbos vegetation of the Cape floral region. It was amazing to witness such an event & the way it dislocated its jaw, to swallow the prey whole, was particularly impressive! Tough for the Chameleon though!
