Horseshoe Whip Snake

About the Horseshoe Whip Snake

The horseshoe whip snake (Hemorrhois hippocrepis) is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to southwestern Europe and northwestern Africa. Adults of H. hippocrepis may attain a total length, including tail, of 1.5 to 1.8 m (5 to 6 feet), with no

sexual dimorphism in body size. Its body is slender the head being wider than the neck. The eye is large, with a round pupil and a row of small scales below it. The smooth dorsal scales are arranged in 25-29 rows, and the ventrals number 220–258. Dorsally, it has a series of large spots which are either blackish or dark brown edged with black. There is a series of alternating smaller dark spots on each side. The lighter ground color between the spots may be yellowish, olive, or reddish. The dark spots are closely spaced, giving the appearance of a dark snake with a light pattern resembling a chain or a series of letters X. There is a light horseshoe-shaped mark on the neck and back of head.

H. hippocrepis is found in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia in North Africa, in southern and central Portugal, southern, eastern and central Spain, Gibraltar, southern Sardinia and Pantelleria... Wikipedia →