(Source: Yangmingshan National Park Headquarters)

Umbrella snake/

The many-banded krait is so named because it has on its body broad black bands mixed with white narrow bands in between, looking like many bands. It is a mid-sized snake of about 1.9m maximum length. The width of the white band at the center of its back is far narrower than the black bands. Only a very few of them have their black bands turning into light brown or fragmented, making the body brownish black. They can be identified from the tail of a single scale or the big scale at the center of the back. It has a small but non–triangular head, and has no pit. The white plum blossom snake (Lycodon ruhstrati ruhstrati), its kinsman, has broader but irregular white bands (as shown below).

The species is nocturnal and slow in movement. Frogs, lizards, fish and other snakes are their staple foods. They are often found in Myanmar, south China and Taiwan. They live in humid environments on the mountainside and cultivated lands. They are occasionally seen on Yangmingshan. Mating during August and September, they lay about 3-20 eggs each time between the end of spring and summer. It takes about 1.5 months to hatch these eggs.

The many-banded krait is quite mild and seldom attacks humans spontaneously. However, it becomes very sensitive when frightened. It has a pair of big grooved-teeth about 5mm long and two pairs of smaller grooved-teeth. It is the most venomous of all venomous snakes in Taiwan. Its venom is neurotoxic, victims seldom feel great pain, just like an ant’s bite. Though there are tooth marks, the wound does not swell and bleeds very little, thus making people often neglect the bite. Therefore, extreme caution is needed. A bite will turn into something approaching fatal-respiratory failure-when one feels sleepy. This usually takes 30 minutes to 2 hours. Its venom first attacks the connection between nerves and muscles, and then blocks the transmission of neurons, causing the striated muscles to fail to contract and respiration to be paralyzed. Therefore, victims should seek immediate medical attention when eyelids become heavy or when they feel chest discomfort. Though it is only the number three human attacker in Taiwan, it is the number two human killer. The mortality rate of victims is as high as 18-24%.