UWI The Online Guide to the Animals of Trinidad and Tobago Diversity Siphlophis cervinus (Checker-bellied Snake) Family: Dipsadidae (Rear-fanged Snakes) Order: Squamata (Lizards and Snakes) Class: Reptilia (Reptiles) Fig. 1. Checker-bellied snake, Siphlophis cervinus. [http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Siphlophis&species=cervinus, downloaded 31 October 2016] TRAITS. The checker-bellied snake is thin and long, with a wide head and bulgy brown eyes. Its pattern consists of a checkered arrangement of orange, black and bright yellow (Fig. 1). The checker-bellied snake can reach up to 125cm long as a full grown adult (Smith and Seebaran, 1979). DISTRIBUTION. The checker-bellied snake can be found in tropical regions from Panama to Trinidad, Brazil, Bolivia and Peru (Fig. 2) (Murphy, 2016). HABITAT AND ECOLOGY. The snake can be found in habitats from forests to marshlands. Checker-bellied snakes are nocturnal animals in nature and can rarely be found during the day unless the conditions match that of the night. This animal is rare, so there have been very few sightings and observations done on it; the main food of the checker-bellied snake is believed to be lizards (Smith and Seebaran, 1979). This species is oviparous, and lays eggs (Boos, 2001); it is known to lay 3-6 eggs during its laying period (Murphy, 2016). UWI The Online Guide to the Animals of Trinidad and Tobago Diversity BEHAVIOUR. Checker-bellied snakes are one of the rarest species of snakes known to Trinidad and very little is known of its behaviour. The very few sightings of the snake have been among the marsh lands of Nariva swamp where the snake has been found foraging by itself. The juvenile snake moves in a way which resembles a sidewinder, in loops and usually throwing itself forward. The snake is not aggressive in nature and upon contact with a predator would hide its distinctively large head under its coiled body (Smith and Seebaran, 1979). REFERENCES Boos, H.E.A. (2001). The snakes of Trinidad and Tobago: Texas A&M University Press. Murphy, J.C. (2016). Checker-bellied Snake, Siphlophis cervinus (Family Disadidae): The Herpetology of Trinidad and Tobago. Reptile Database (2016). Siphlophis cervinus, http://reptile- database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Siphlophis&species=cervinus Smith, R and Seeberan, G. (1979). Occurrence of the Rare Checker-bellied Snake, Siphlophis cervinus in the Nariva Swamp, Trinidad: Living World, Journal of the Trinidad and Tobago Field Naturalists’ Club. Author: Haven Sankar Posted online: 2016 Fig. 2. Checker-bellied snake geographic distribution. [http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Siphlophis&species=cervinus, downloaded 31 October 2016] For educational use only - copyright of images remains with original source .