Yesterday I posted about a Viperine at the river but I was only armed with my smartphone. This morning, I had a camera and it was back there again.
In fact there were 2 there, it was joined by a much larger and lighter-coloured Viperine which wasn’t in the water, as soon as it saw me it slithered into the water and moved away in the current.
The existing one actually popped its head out of the water for this great top down shot.
UPDATE : I have much better photos in this blog post – Morning Dog Walk: The Viperine Was Back In The Same Place
Whilst walking the dogs, I spotted this Viperine partially submerged where the water runs through the tubes on the bridge/ford near the house.
The Viperine is a harmless semi-aquatic snake that takes it’s name from the fact that it’s head is shaped like a Viper. I think this was quite young, it was only around 25-30cms in length, they can grow up to 85cm.
I watched it for a while and it was being very clever. Due to the recent rain, the river is flowing well and it was catching small fish as they get sucked through the tube.
Photos aren’t great as they are from my smartphone which struggles to see through reflections in water.
Yesterday I decided to walk into the village (São Marcos da Serra) to participate in a few cold beverages at the Feira do Folar (3 day Easter Festival).
The sun was shining and it was a warm day. I looked down just in time to stop myself treading on this Tiny Viperine snake enjoying the warm road surface. It was well camouflaged and at first I thought it was dead, but then I saw it´s tongue pop out.
When I picked the coin back up, it coiled like a Viper ready to strike which backed up my thoughts of being a Viperine. I did laugh as it was supposed to be threatening, but actually just looked even cuter! In adult life, they can grow up to 85cm, so it has a lot of eating to do to get to that size!
The Viperine is not actually a Viper and has no venom. It spends a lot of time in water and eats aquatic life including Frogs and Toads. If threatened can strike repeatedly like a Viper but doesn’t bite. The photos were taken on my mobile.
