Genus · Colubridae
Coronelaps
The genus Coronelaps contains a single species. It is not considered dangerous to humans.
About Brazilian ground snakes
A rare, little-known South American ground snake that lives quietly in the leaf litter of southeastern Brazil.
Coronelaps is a tiny genus in the family Colubridae, the largest and most diverse family of snakes worldwide. It was carved out to hold a single recognized species, the Minas Gerais snake, which is found in the highland forests and grasslands of southeastern Brazil. The genus belongs to the broad assemblage of New World ground and forest snakes, a group of small, terrestrial colubrids that spend most of their lives close to or under the ground rather than in the open or in trees.
Members of Coronelaps are small, slender snakes built for life in soil and leaf litter. Like most ground-dwelling colubrids, they have smooth, even scales, a head that is barely wider than the neck, and modest, dark coloration that blends into the forest floor. They are not flashy snakes, and they are easy to overlook, which is part of why so little has been documented about their day-to-day lives. Confident identification of obscure South American ground snakes usually requires examining scale counts and other fine anatomical details rather than color alone.
On safety, the honest answer is that this is a small, secretive colubrid with no reputation for being dangerous to people. Many colubrids are harmless, while some carry mild rear-fanged venom used to subdue small prey such as amphibians, lizards, or invertebrates; the specifics for this rarely studied genus are not well established. The sensible posture is to leave any wild snake alone and not handle it. If a bite ever occurs and you are unsure of the species, treat it seriously, watch for unusual symptoms, and contact emergency services or US Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222 (or your local emergency number) rather than guessing.
Coronelaps belongs to the Colubridae family (Colubrids). The largest snake family, and the one most snakes you meet belong to. Typically round pupils, a head only slightly wider than the neck, and no heat-sensing facial pit or rattle. Scales may be smooth and glossy or keeled and matte depending on the species.
Danger: Almost all colubrids are harmless. A small number are rear-fanged with medically significant venom, the boomslang and the twig (vine) snakes of Africa being the dangerous exceptions. Most colubrids will flee or bluff rather than bite.
All species (1)
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