Beauty Rat Snake

Elaphe taeniura

The beauty rat snake is a species of long, slender, semi-arboreal snakes that are native to Asia. Several subspecies are recognized. Their average length is about 5-7 feet, with an unofficial record of slightly under 10 feet. In captivity some calm down to be nice pets, but others have been known to be quite temperamental even many years after capture.
From head to toe This asian snake has a very distinct feature: a striped tail. The Orthiophis, or Orty to its friends, is a very fast mover and quite a climber too (even birds and sometimes bats in full flight aren't safe from Orty). At birth these snakes have a 30cm head to tail and can reach up to 3 meters). Their native area of expertise is Taiwan and Japan. Geotagged,Oliemeulen,Orthriophis taeniurus,The Netherlands,beauty rat snake,japan,orthiophis taeniurus frisei,snake,taiwan,zoo

Naming

Subspecies of this group include the:
⤷  Chinese beauty rat snake - Native to China.
⤷  Cave-dwelling rat snake - This snake is native to Thailand and peninsular Malaysia, and as the name implies, lives deep within caves. Its diet consists mainly of bats. They have a yellow to beige background color that darkens to a grey-black towards the tail. A white to cream mid-dorsal stripe starts about half of the way down the body and continues to the tip of tail. Both sides of the head are marked just behind the eye with a black stripe surrounded by blue.
⤷  Mocquard's beauty rat snake - Native to southeastern China and northern Vietnam, as well as the island of Hainan.
⤷  Taiwan beauty rat snake - Native to Taiwan and the Ryukyu Islands of Japan.
⤷  "Orthriophis taeniurus grabowskyi" - Native to Sumatra and the provinces of East Malaysia and Kalimantan on the island of Borneo.
⤷  "Orthriophis taeniurus schmackeri" - Native to the Ryukyu Islands of Japan.
⤷  "Orthriophis taeniurus yunnanensis" - Native to China, India, Laos, Myanmar, eastern Thailand and Vietnam.
⤷  "Orthriophis taeniurus ssp." - Native to Burma, Thailand and Vietnam.
That's a long lot of skin A zilion small plates glued together to form a snake. Who would have thought of such a design? Another snap of the rat snake, showing a lengthy collection of the snake, without even seeing its head or teail. Reaching up to 3 meters it made up for a crowded cozy space. Geotagged,Japan,Oliemeulen,Orthriophis taeniurus,Taiwan,The Netherlands,beauty rat snake,orthiophis taeniurus frisei,snake,zoo

Reproduction

The temperature for hibernation is around 18-20 degrees C. Mating usually results about a month after hibernation period. Hatchlings are about 30-45 cm in length and shed after about 14 days. Following shedding, pinkie mice should be fed immediately. They grow quickly and attain a length of 135 cm after only 14 months. They are capable of reproduction after only 18 months.
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end A lengthy snake, showing its true ending while facing me. It certainly caught my eye and I hope it does yours. So a fewe metres of snake concentrate to a small spot indeed. Watch out mice! Geotagged,Japan,Oliemeulen,Orthriophis taeniurus,Taiwan,The Netherlands,beauty rat snake,orthiophis taeniurus frisei,snake,zoo

Cultural

The 1988 Hong Kong film "Thunder of Gigantic Serpent" features a member of this species as Mozler, the titular monster. Much like the real life counterpart, Mozler is kept as a calm pet throughout much of the movie.

References:

Some text fragments are auto parsed from Wikipedia.

Status: Unknown
EX EW CR EN VU NT LC
Taxonomy
KingdomAnimalia
DivisionChordata
ClassReptilia
OrderSquamata
FamilyColubridae
GenusElaphe
Species
Photographed in
Netherlands