SUMMARY
VENOM: Toxicity unclear, not thought to be leathal, possibly mild effects in humans
PREVALENCE: Somewhat Common
ACTIVE PERIOD: Active during the day in Singapore, but night in most other localities
KEY ID FEATURES: Striking electric blue laterals, bright red head and tail, very long and thin
BEHAVIOR: Hunts on the ground and leaf litter, can be found trail side
SIZE: Medium - ~2m
OTHER: Can bite with little indication from physical posturing, very likely to bite if handled
RANGE: Can be found throughout South East Asia
QUICK ASSESSMENT 0-10
GALLERY
IMPORTANT: Many snakes have significant variance in coloration and pattern even within the same species. There can also be extreme differences in appearance from juveniles to adults so it is important to never assume you have properly identified a snake.
DESCRIPTION
A stunning snake to see, the Malayan blue coral snake is, as it’s common name indicates, is a vibrant electrice blue in color with deep blacks on the dorsum and bright red head, tail and ventrals. This species can also be quite long, approaching and sometimes exceeding 2m in length, but remaining quite thin. Their head is small relative to their body with no obvious transition between the head and neck. Their tails are moderate length with split subcadal scales and a single anal plate.
BEHAVIOR
Active during the day in Singapore but often at night in other locatlities and mainly hunts other snakes. Generally docile when approached but are very quick to bite if scared, handled, or otherwise intefered with. Normally slow and deliberate in their movement but they are capable of moving quickly when fleeing or defending themselves. When startled or threatened they will twitch wildly and bite, and can also dart quickly under leaf litter and flatten body against the ground to hide or make it difficult for predators to pick up. As with many terrestrial elapids they often hide their heads under their body if threatened and curl their tail to act as a decoy. They tend to hunt in forested areas at various elevations. It should be noted that the venom gland of this species runs from the head down the first third of the body making it capable of delivering a larger dose than its diminutive head size indicates. Venomous, but toxicity is unclear and not thought to be lethal, may even be mild in cases of human envenomation.
HABITAT
The Malayan blue coral snake is a terrestrial species often hunting at night across its range but during the day in Singapore. It can be found in forested locations where it lives and hunts in leaf littler. They are found at various elevations.
MISTAKEN IDENTITY
NO SNAKE SHOULD EVER BE HANDLED BY ANYONE BUT EXPERTS: The Malayan blue coral is quite unique in appearance but may be mistaken for the also highly venomous red-headed krait in parts of south east asia. The pink headed reed snake, a small harmless species can also be mistaken for baby Malayan blue coral snakes, with the blue coloration and red tail on the coral being the ke differentiators.