Snakes are carnivorous reptiles from the suborder Serpentes. There are more than 3,900 species of snakes globally, with diverse sizes ranging from 10.4 cm to 12.8 meters long. In this post, we have ranked the Top 20 Rarest snakes in the world according to the conversation status.
Here, we have tried to cover nearly all critically endangered snake species endemic to particular regions. So, without any further ado, let’s discuss the list of rarest snakes globally.
20) Spider-tailed horned viper
Conversation Status- Unknown
Geographic range where the snake is found- Gilan-e Gharb, Iran
Spider-tailed horned viper, also known as spider snake, is one of the venomous snakes from the family Viperidae (Vipers). It has a unique tail that looks like a spider.
It uses its tail to lure birds, and its rough brown scales with horns provide it a camouflage. These snakes can be found in the various regions of Iran.
19) Round Island boa
Conversation Status- Vulnerable
Geographic range where the snake is found- Gunner’s Quoin
Round Island boa, also known as Round Island keel-scaled boa, is a non-venomous snake from the family Bolyeriidae.
Their body is covered with small keeled scales, and they are primarily active at night. It may grow up to 150 cm and can be found on the islands of Gunner’s Quoin.
18) Bothrops Alcatraz-
Conversation Status- Vulnerable
Geographic range where the snake is found- Ilha Alcatrazes, São Paulo, Brazil
Bothrops Alcatraz is the venomous snake from species pitviper. The species is categorized under the vulnerable conversation status and can only be found on the southeastern coast of Brazil. They have a petite body size and can grow a maximum of up to 50.5 cm.
17) Bolo snake-
Conversation Status- Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Viti Levu Island, Republic of Fiji
Bolo Snake, also known as Fiji snake (Ogmodon vitianus), is from the family Elapidae. It is one of the rarest snakes in the world and is also distinguished under the endangered species. Bolo snake can only be found on the island of Viti Levu in the Republic of Fiji.
16) Cropani’s tree boa-
Conversation Status- Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Miracatu, State of São Paulo, Brazil
Cropani’s tree boa, also known as Corallus cropanii, is one of the endangered species of boa. It is from the family Boidae. It is non-venomous and has more than 30 dorsal scales in rows over their bodies. It is primarily found in the coastal plain of Brazil.
15) Cuban khaki dwarf boa-
Conversation Status- Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- West Indies
Cuban khaki dwarf boa is one of the rarest snakes in the world. It is from boa species that are only found in the West Indies. It is also categorized under endangered species. They can grow up to 3 feet long.
14) Sahul reef snake or Short-nosed sea snake-
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Ashmore & Cartier Islands and the Ningaloo Reef, Australia
Sahul reef snake, also known as Short nosed sea snake or Aipysurus apraefrontalis, is one of the critically endangered venomous sea snake species from the family Elapidae.
These slender brown snakes have small pointed heads and purplish-brown bands over their body. It may grow up to 60 cm and can be found in the Northwestern region of Australia.
13) Wagner’s viper-
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Lake Urmia, Iran & Eastern Turkey
Wagner’s viper, also known as ocellate mountain viper, is one of the critically endangered venomous viper species from the family Viperidae.
It has a grayish ground color body covered with small keeled scales of yellowish-brown or orange colors with black borders. It can grow up to a maximum length of 95 cm. It is only found in eastern Turkey and northwestern Iran.
12) Leaf-scaled Sea Snake
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Shark Bay on the western coast of Australia
Leaf-scaled Sea Snake, another name Aipysurus foliosquama, is one of the critically endangered venomous sea snake species. It is from the family Elapidae and has purple-brown scales.
It may grow up to 800 millimeters and can be found at Shark Bay on the western coast of Australia.
11) Darevsky’s viper
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Dzavakhety Mountains, Shirak Marz of Armenia
Darevsky’s viper, another name Vipera darevskii, is one of the critically endangered venomous viper species from the family Viperidae. It is a relatively small snake species with 42.1 cm maximum length, but its bite is too painful and life-threatening even for adult humans. It is in light brown with a black zigzag pattern all over its body.
10) Kikuzato’s brook snake
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Kumejima Island, Japan
Kikuzato’s brook snake is the rarest snake in the world from the family Colubridae. It is semiaquatic species endemic to Kumejima Island, Japan.
It has a dark-shine body with a small head and mainly feeds on earthworms, freshwater shrimp, freshwater fishes, tadpoles, and frogs.
9) The Aruba Island rattlesnake
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Aruba
Crotalus unicolor, also known as The Aruba Island rattlesnake, is one of the rarest venomous snakes in the world from pitviper species. It has a bodyweight of up to one kilogram and can grow approximately 90 cm.
Its body is light brown and pink in color with dark brown diamond-shaped marking. It can only be found on the island of Aruba.
8) Santa Catalina rattlesnake
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Isla Santa Catalina, Gulf of California
Another rarest venomous snake from pitviper species is Santa Catalina rattlesnake, also called Crotalus catalinensis. It can grow up to 73.1 cm.
It has either a light cream-colored body with reddish-brown blotching or an ash-gray color body with darker gray blotching. This rattlesnake is mainly found in the Gulf of California.
7) Saint Vincent blacksnake
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Saint Vincent blacksnake, also called Saint Vincent coachwhip, is also categorized under the rarest snake because of its critical endangered conversation status.
It is from the family Colubridae and is endemic to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. It can grow up to 100 cm in length and have a dark-brown body color.
6) Ross’ wolf snake
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Dalupiri Island, Philippines
Another critically endangered colubrid snake species is Lycodon chrysoprateros or Ross’ wolf snake. It can only be witnessed at Dalupiri Island in the Philippines.
It can grow up to 72.7 centimeters and has a dark brown dorsal surface without any pattern.
5) Golden Lancehead
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Queimada Grande Island, Brazil
Bothrops insularis, also known as Golden Lancehead, is one of the critically endangered venomous snakes from pitviper species. It has yellowish-brown body color with a size range from 70 cm to 90 cm.
It is also considered one of the most expensive snakes in the world. Golden Lancehead viper can only be seen at São Paulo state in Brazil.
4) Xenotyphlops grandidieri
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Northern Madagascar
Xenotyphlops grandidieri, also known as Madagascar Blind snake, is one of the critically endangered snake species from blind snake or thread snake species.
It has a small body size covered with beautiful pink color. It can only be found in Northern Madagascar.
3) Antiguan racer
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Islands on the Antigua Bank
In the past, Antiguan racer is categorized under the extinct status. But thanks to conservation efforts, these snakes have increased in number from 50 to 1100 within the span of 20 years.
Antiguan racer is a non-venomous gray-brown snake from the family Colubridae. It can be found on Great Bird Island, Rabbit Island, Green Island, and York Island off the coast of Antigua.
2) Vipera orlovi
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Caucasus, Russia
Vipera orlovi, also known as Orlov’s Viper, is also one of the rarest venomous snakes in the world. It can only be seen in the Caucasus area of Russia.
It is placed at the second position because of its decreasing population trend. Vipera orlovi has dark-brown body color with black shades.
1) Saint Lucia racer
Conversation Status- Critically Endangered
Geographic range where the snake is found- Saint Lucia, West Indies
Saint Lucia racer, also called as ornate ground snake, is the rarest snake in the world, with fewer than 20 left globally. It can grow up to 123.5 cm body length from head to tail.
Saint Lucia racer is a non-venomous snake that can only be discovered in Saint Lucia, West Indies. It has a brown cerebral stripe with alternating yellow spots.
Here, we conclude our article on “Top 20 Rarest Snakes in the World (According to Conversation Status).” We hope you like this post. We will be back with another post. Till then, stay tuned with us and read the articles below.
Symbol used-
1 m = 100 cm
1 cm = 0.39 inches
1 foot = 30.48 cm
References-
Image Source- Wikipedia, Ryan Photographic, Live Science, Alchetron, National Parks (Facebook), EDGE of Existence
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Monty is a founder of How It See. Being a life science student in a reputed university, he always wonders about an eclectic correlation between science and nature. After engaging in various college projects, Monty determined to share all his knowledge with you as a writer. In the meantime, he loves to research and study about the various types of colorful animals.