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Sorry, missed this one.......was very busy with the trees in Cape Town!

I'm not an expert on snakes and this is interesting to find that Green Mambas are not found in KNP! Never new this. This snake was in a tree and I had a good look at it through the binocs as SO was at the camp.

Went back to the camp shop and paged through a snake book. It was def not a Boomslang. I remember something about the Boomslang's scales being keeled & not smooth. This one's scles looked smooth to me?

Could it be something else? apart from a BS or Mamba? Or could this be a mamba that emigrated??? I know they are found in Zim.

Maybe a Green Water Snake (Philothamnus hoplogaster)?
It is often mistaken for the green mamba.

The big difference for me between boomslang and green mamba is that the BS has got far bigger eyes.

Yes , I cant see a huge difference in the scales .
And some boomslangs looked dam smooth to me

Hi Luislang

Perhaps the mistaken green mamba was a Natal Green Snake (Dendrophis natalensis). Quite similar in appearance to a Green Mamba - between 75 and 100 cm in length - bright green. Usually seen between Olifants and Pafuri.

Thanks Nunu

Quite possible as it was ± 1m long.

In 30 years of regular visits to Kruger I have only seen a snake in the camp once and that was in April in Biyamiti. It was a male Puff Adder and I posted a pic of it on the Biyamiti sightings page (2) for April.

Berg en Dal and Biyamiti in September

Hi there

I visited the park for many years and never once saw a snake in a rest camp - or anywhere else for that matter.

The only place we saw a snake was Etosha and it was a python - pretty harmless to humans if you are careful.

We did see a couple of scorpions on the floor in the huts though - so be careful when you put your shoes on. As a rule the bigger the tail the more poisonous the scorpion. The pincers are no indication of danger.

Also we had a fruit bat in our hut one night - we closed all the curtains and opened the door - and it flew out. It was not dangerous - just a little unnerving.

Another time a baboon hopped over the fence and stole some bread of the table. That was pretty scary.

I don't think you see many snakes in camps because there is too much human activity - so the snakes are scared off. I would still be careful around trees and rockeries though - you never know.

The camps are mostly good for bird watching - and you might see an impala or a bush buck or two.

Enjoy your trip
T
PS don't forget the insect repellant

Hi folks
These stories are fascinating, esp. since i have a phobia (or is that healthy respect) for snakes, & more so since we'll be in the Park from Thursday thru to Monday. I will certainly be a lot more cautious than usual, not that i have been careless in the past. I will probably also find myself scanning the bush for snakes as well as all our other animal friends.

Once we did get a fantastic sighting of a boomslang in a dead bush....SO saw it as we drove past, & when we reversed to identify it, we could easily pick out the identifying features. It was a good opportunity to have a discussion with the kids about snakes & other reptiles. They did the research & relayed the info to the adults. Much discussion ensued.

We found out just how effective the "Nature Studies" in junior schools were in educating the kids about our natural & animal environments. :D

This brings me to a very important educational thrust that relatively few people are aware of :-
Elsewhere on this website (under Honorary Rangers) i have noticed a number of articles about a small group of dedicated HR's who give up their valuable time to go to schools and other young people's groups to do displays & give talks about our National Parks to junior schools children. To my mind, this is where awareness of our natural heritage should start, and i therefore cannot commend these people highly enough for their commitment and initiative.

Regrettably, my kids didn't have the opportunity to benefit from such a wonderful programme, but then again, they did have Mom & Dad to impart their newly researched knowledge onto. I am proud to say that these young adults of mine have a very healthy respect for and knowledge of our world of nature.

This HR team fill the gap where kids do not have the opportunity to learn about & see what many of us fortunates take for granted. My parting shot is this...keep it up HR team, you are doing a wonderful job out there!!!!!

Hi
In july i had a Black mamba in my tent at Lower sabie tent at the river
i have pic if you would like it?

ShOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO WhEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!
How exiting! Yes please we would luv a pic And also some info on the snake, how big was it, how did you get rid of it and anything else you can share with us

Hi GJ, and welcome.

A black Mamba in your tent is definitely worth posting a pic,
I am pretty sure it is going to cause many a camper to inspect their tents and sleeping bags more carefully in future tho.

Has anybody seen / or have pictures of rinkhals in the Kruger, Would luv to hear about it or see the pics.

Hi Blackmamba,

I tried various sites but non of them specify Kruger as a habitat for rinkhals, thus they should not occur there and could be confused with the moz. spitting cobra.



Interesting distrubution on the border of zim and moz though.

I BM

I have never seen a rinkhals in the Kruger. They Moz SC seems to be the most common of the cobras throughout the park.