page_title: Many-banded krait
section_title: Behaviour and diet
hierarchical_section_title: Many-banded krait / Behaviour and diet
caption_attribution_description: English: A many-banded krait.
context_page_description: The many-banded krait, also known as the Taiwanese krait or the Chinese krait, is an extremely venomous species of elapid snake found in much of central and southern China and Southeast Asia. The species was first described by the scientist Edward Blyth in 1861. This species has two known subspecies, the nominate Bungarus multicinctus multicinctus, and Bungarus multicinctus wanghaotingi. The many-banded krait mostly inhabits marshy areas throughout its geographical distribution, though it does occur in other habitat types.
context_section_description: The snake is nocturnal, and may be more defensive at night. It is, however, a timid and placid species of snake. In the daytime, it hides under stones or in holes. The snake appears from April and retreats into hibernation in November. It is considered to be more defensive than the Banded krait (Bungarus fasciatus), thrashing about as it is handled.
  Unlike other Bungarus species, who are primarily snake-eaters, the many-banded krait usually feeds on fish, but it is also preys on other species of snakes, including members of its own species. This species also feeds on rodents, eels, frogs, and occasionally lizards.
  The Journal of Medical Virology found gene information (codon usage bias) from bungarus multicinctus and naja atra snakes that matches that of the virus 2019‐nCoV (aka covid-19), including genetic information from other animals such as bats (rhinolophus sinicus) suggesting possible animal origins of the virus 2019-nCoV.  Article published January 22, 2020.  Source:  https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/jmv.25682
caption: Close-up of the head with scalation showing
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