Red-lipped Snake

The red-lipped snake or herald snake (Crotaphopeltis hotamboeia) is a small to medium-sized African snake. Adults are commonly about 30–70 cm long, although large individuals can approach 1 m.

Colour varies considerably. The body may be grey, brown, olive or nearly black, often with scattered white spots that can form narrow crossbars in juveniles. The head is darker than the body, with glossy black or bluish-black patches behind the eyes. The upper lip may be red, orange, yellow, white or dark, so the black temporal patches are more reliable for identification than lip colour.

Red-lipped snakes occur in moist savanna, grassland, marsh edges, lowland forest and other damp environments. They also enter gardens, where they shelter beneath rocks, logs, garden debris and compost heaps. The species is widespread across sub-Saharan Africa but generally avoids the driest arid regions.

Frogs and toads dominate the diet, supplemented by small lizards and occasional small rodents. The species can swallow amphibians that appear remarkably large compared with its own head and body.

It hunts mainly at night through damp ground vegetation and around wetlands. Prey is seized and held while mild venom delivered through enlarged rear teeth begins to take effect.

The species is nocturnal and usually spends the day concealed under logs, rocks, vegetation or other cover. When threatened, it can flatten the head, raise the front of the body, hiss and make repeated strikes.

The defensive display can look dramatic, but the snake usually tries to escape when given space. It should not be handled, even though it poses little medical danger to people.

The species lays eggs. Females deposit about six to nineteen eggs in leaf litter or another warm, sheltered site in early summer. Incubation lasts approximately 61–64 days, and hatchlings are usually about 13–18 cm long. Individuals have been recorded living for 10–15 years.

The red-lipped snake is rear-fanged and mildly venomous. Its venom is adapted for subduing prey and the species poses no serious threat to people or domestic animals. A prolonged bite may cause slight local swelling.

Any bite from an unidentified snake, or a bite followed by increasing symptoms, should nevertheless be assessed by medical professionals.

Red-lipped snakes often occur in gardens and around houses because damp shelter and frogs can be abundant there. Their defensive behaviour and variable dark colour can lead people to assume that they are dangerous.

Individuals are therefore sometimes killed unnecessarily. Leaving the snake an escape route and avoiding handling is safer for both people and the animal, especially when identification is uncertain.

The red-lipped snake is classified as least concern on the IUCN Red List. It has a very large range, is common in many suitable habitats and can persist in gardens and other modified landscapes.

No major decline is known for the species as a whole. Local populations may be affected by wetland and grassland degradation, road mortality and deliberate killing.