Image of Dice Snake

Description:

Slo.: kobranka - Habitat: mountain river bank with densely overgrown banks, dominant trees Salix eleagnos, Salix purpurea, Picea abies, Corylus avellana, Ostrya carprinifolia, calcareous ground, half shade, average precipitations ~ 3.000 mm/year, average temperature 7-9 deg C, river water temperature about 10-12 deg C, elevation 540 m (1.770 feet), alpine phytogeographical region. - Comment: Natrix tessellate is a beautiful, nonvenomous and totally harmless 'water' snake, which can grow up to the length of 1.3 m (50 inches). Its only defense is spreading a bad smelling secretion from its cloaca and playing dead.When on dry land it is very efficiently hiding itself and thus it's hard to find it. But when swimming in standing waters or river streams it loses all fear and can be easily approached. Enlisted in the Slovene Red List of rare and endangered species, marked by 'V' representing a vulnerable species. - Ref.: (1) Fauna Europas, Bestimmungslexikon, George Westermann Velag, Brounschweig (1997), (translated to Slovenian), Mladinaka Knjiga, Ljubljana (1981), pp 305.