Elapsoidea sundevallii
Elapsoidea sundevallii, also known commonly as Sundevall's garter snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is native to Southern Africa. There are five recognised subspecies. Etymology. The specific epithet, "sundevalli", honours Swedish zoologist Carl Jakob Sundevall (1801–1875). The subspecific name, "decosteri", is in honour of Belgian consul Juste De Coster, who collected natural history specimens at Delagoa Bay, Mozambique. The subspecific name, "fitzsimonsi", is in honour of South African herpetologist Vivian Frederick Maynard FitzSimons. Geographic range. "E. sundevallii" is found in Botswana, Eswatini, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. Habitat. The  preferred natural habitats of "E. sundevallii" are grassland, shrubland, savanna, and forest, at altitudes from sea level to . Description. Adults of "E. sundevallii" are slate-grey to black or dark brown on the upper body, with whitish to pinkish bellies. Juveniles are banded. Males grow to be longer than females. The maximum recorded snout-to-vent length (SVL) for a male is . The maximum recorded SVL for a female is only . Diet. "E. sundevallii" preys upon frogs, lizards and their eggs, snakes, moles, and rodents. Venom. Although "E. sundevallii" is venomous and can inflict a serious bite, few bites have  been recorded, and none has resulted in a human fatality. Symptoms may include pain and swelling, nausea and vomiting, blurred vision, and loss of consciousness. Reproduction. The species "E. sundevallii" is oviparous. A sexually mature female may lay a clutch of as many as 10 eggs. Subspecies. The following five subspecies, including the nominotypical subspecies, are recognised as being valid. "Nota bene": A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than "Elapsoidea".