Hainan Weekly | Hainan Hua Coral Snake: Small figure also has great energy

Wen\Hainan Daily reporter Li Mengyao

Despite their self-proclaimed "overlord of the earth," humans are not immune in all ecosystems, such as the fact that many explorers retreat when they mention the rainforest, and snakes that are wrapped around tree trunks and shuttle through the grass can make their hair stand upright.

For snakes that prefer dark and damp, the rainforest is an ideal habitat. Especially in China's most concentrated, best-preserved, contiguous Hainan tropical rainforest, different species of snakes live freely, and some unique Hainan populations have evolved.

No, domestic scholars have found a new member of the genus Chinese coral snake here.

The genus Sinomicrus is a compound word, Sin means "Chinese" in Latin. Due to its small size, complex morphology and hidden habitat, the basic biological data of this small snake belonging to the cobra family has long been incomplete, and since the discovery of the feathered bird's hua coral snake in Taiwan in 1930, the number of "family" members has remained at 5.

Since 2007, a group of scholars from Huangshan University have begun to conduct research in this area, and after more than a decade of efforts, they finally published an article in the journal Asian Amphibian and Reptile Research in 2018 confirming that they found the world's sixth and Fifth Chinese coral snake in the Qiongzhong Mountains region of Hainan Province, the Hainan Chinese Coral Snake.

In appearance, the Hainan Hua coral snake, which is reddish brown throughout, has a black pattern, and has two disconnected white stripes on the left and right sides of the head, and its "relatives" are almost like sharing a face. After the "blood identification" of it, scholars found that it was closest to the Fujian Hua coral snake, and the two should have a common ancestor. Perhaps it was a long time ago that Hainan Island was separated from the mainland, and the population isolated on the island gradually evolved into a new species.

Hainan Hua coral snake, data map.

Like its "relatives", the Hainan Coral Snake cannot easily prey on rodents, and can only choose small snakes and small lizards that are easy to swallow. At night, they wait for an opportunity to sneak under the humus layer on the surface of the rainforest to sniff the smell of prey. Although small, it secretes a neurological venom that can kill prey in an instant.

Fortunately, the Hainan Hua coral snake has a more docile temperament and rarely takes the initiative to attack humans.

Original title: Hainan Hua Coral Snake: Small figure also has great energy