Snakes
Snakes are superbly adapted for their life on the ground. With long, cylindrical bodies and without legs, to get in the way, they can squeeze into narrow openings, between stones even follow rodents down their burrows in search of prey. They prove you don’t need legs to move fast as, with their strong muscular bodies, they can power along on the ground, in trees and, for some species, in water. Fierce predators they are very important in the ecosystem as they prey on rodents, insects, other reptiles and birds. They provide us with a valuable service, as they keep down rats and mice and other agricultural pest.
Of course one of their weapons in the predator – prey battle is venom, a mixture of complex toxic compounds injected by some species into prey by hollow fangs. A few species are dangerous to man and this has brought the whole group into the firing line when it comes to people. However the safest way to deal with snakes is to leave them alone. This is mostly quite easy as when out on our walk in the country, mostly all you see of them is a tail disappearing into the undergrowth – they are scared of us too!
Illustrated below are some of Lebanon’s snakes that you might see when out and about, remember watch and keep at least 2m away, do not provoke them or try to kill or injure them:
| Large Whip Snake |
| Coluber jugularis |
| Size: largest snake in Lebanon up to 2 m + |
| Where found: Widespread in Lebanon up to 1000m. Dry open places, meadows, rocky river banks, stony slopes, fields and wetlands. |
| Diet: rodents, birds, chicks and lizards |
| Relations with man: not poisonous but will bite, useful in agricultural pest control |
| Dahl’s Whip Snake |
| Coluber najadum |
| Size: a slender, long snake up to 140 cm |
| Where found: up to 1800m Dry stony places with bushes |
| Diet: Lizards and insects |
| Relations with man: harmless |
| Red Whip Snake |
| Coluber rubriceps |
| Size: a slender snake up to 1m long |
| Where found: up to 1500m Dry rocky places but not very high rocky slopes sometimes in cultivated land |
| Diet: Lizards and insects |
| Relations with man: not poisonous but will bite – very quick moving |
| Red Whip Snake |
| Coluber rubriceps |
| Size: a slender snake up to 1m long |
| Where found: up to 1500m Dry rocky places but not very high rocky slopes sometimes in cultivated land |
| Diet: Lizards and insects |
| Relations with man: not poisonous but will bite – very quick moving |
| Four-lined Rat Snake |
| Elaphe quatrolineata |
| Size: A large snake up to 2m |
| Where found: up to 2500m Woodland, rocky places, cultivation |
| Diet: small rodents, birds and eggs |
| Relations with man: harmless to man but useful as it eats rodent pests |
| Montpellier Snake |
| Malpolon monspessulanus |
| Size: A slender bodied, narrow headed snake up to 2m |
| Where found: up to 1500m Open, sparsely vegetated rocky and dry habitats |
| Diet: lizards, small mammals and birds |
| Relations with man: its prey are killed by venom, however its fangs are small and at the back of the upper jaw, so not very effective on humans |
| Dice Snake |
| Natrix tessellata |
| Size: A slender necked snake up to 140 cm |
| Where found: up to 2500m Strongly aquatic living in or near water bodies |
| Diet: mostly fish and frogs |
| Relations with man: harmless |
| Blunt-nosed Viper |
| Vipera lebetina |
| Size: a stout snake with and adult total length 130 to 180 cm |
| Where found: up to 2000m Meadows and pastures, rocky places and ruins, mostly nocturnal |
| Diet: small rodents, birds, lizards and snakes |
| Relations with man: Poisonous – can be fatal if not treated. However this species will not strike if not disturbed. |
| Palestinian Viper |
| Vipera palaestina |
| Size: a large stout bodied viper, max. length 130 cm |
| Where found: light oak forests but also secondary man made habitats such as orchards, gardens and fields, mostly nocturnal |
| Diet: small rodents, birds and lizards |
| Relations with man: Poisonous – can be fatal if not treated. |