The
eastern green mamba or
common mamba (
Dendroaspis angusticeps) is a venomous arboreal snake indigenous to the eastern side of southern
AfricaAfrica is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.8% of the...
. Eastern green mambas are the smallest members of the
mambaMambas, of the genus Dendroaspis, are fast-moving land-dwelling snakes of Africa. They belong to the family of Elapidae which includes cobras, coral snakes, kraits and, debatably, sea snakes although these are now classed as Hydrophiidae, all of which can be extremely deadly. The black mamba...
family, averaging 1.8 meters (5.9 feet), with known specimens to 3.7 m (12 feet). The species is found in forests chiefly near the coast stretching from the Eastern Cape in
South AfricaThe Republic of South Africa is a country located at the southern tip of Africa, with a coastline on the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. To the north lie Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, to the east are Mozambique and Swaziland, while Lesotho is an independent country surrounded by South Africa.Modern...
through
MozambiqueMozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest. It was explored by Vasco da Gama in 1498...
and
TanzaniaThe United Republic of Tanzania is a country in central East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.The United...
as far as south-east
KenyaThe Republic of Kenya is a country in East Africa. Lying along the Indian Ocean, at the equator, Kenya is bordered by Ethiopia , Somalia , Tanzania , Uganda plus Lake Victoria , and Sudan . The capital city is Nairobi. Kenya spans an area about 85% the size of France or Texas...
, going inland as far as southern
MalawiThe Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast and Mozambique, which surrounds it on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by...
and eastern
ZimbabweZimbabwe , is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the continent of Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers...
.
Appearance
The green mamba is overall glossy grass-green in color with light bright green underside. A green snake that is spotted, bluish or has yellow or white undersides is not a green mamba. However, green mamba hatchlings have a yellowish-green color. Green mambas are slender snakes, with a distinct head and long, thin tail.
Behaviour
The green mamba is highly arboreal and seldom ventures to the ground unless following prey or basking. Green mambas are
diurnalDiurnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the day and sleeping at night. Animals that are not diurnal might be nocturnal or crepuscular . Many animal species are diurnal, including many mammals, insects and birds...
. Unlike the
black mambaThe Black Mamba , is an elapid snake and is one of Africa's most dangerous and feared snakes. It has a wide range of known locations throughout Africa. The black mamba is found in Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Botswana,Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa and the...
, it is a shy and unaggressive snake, and does not often gape and strike if threatened but usually makes a swift and elegant escape. Continued provocation will cause the snake to strike, but bites, although serious, are uncommon.
Green mambas make their homes near trees, often in evergreen forest, coastal scrub, or moist savannah. Bamboo thickets and mango plantations are also known to be mamba habitat.
Their diet consists primarily of adult and juvenile
birdBirds are winged, bipedal, endothermic , vertebrate animals that lay eggs. There are around 10,000 living species, making them the most numerous tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Birds range in size from the Bee Hummingbird to the ...
s, birds'
eggIn most birds and reptiles, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum. To enable incubation the egg is usually kept within a favourable temperature range as it nourishes and protects the growing embryo. When the embryo is adequately developed it breaks out of the egg in the...
s, and small
mammalMammals are a class of vertebrate animals whose females are characterized by the possession of mammary glands while both males and females are characterized by sweat glands, hair, three middle ear bones used in hearing, and a neocortex region in the brain.Mammals are divided into three main...
s. Young mambas occasionally eat other reptiles, such as
chameleonThe family Chamaeleonidae are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of lizards. They are distinguished by their parrot-like zygodactylous feet, their separately mobile and stereoscopic eyes, their very long, highly modified, and rapidly extrudable tongues, their swaying gait, and the...
s.
The green mamba is oviparous, laying 6-17 eggs in summer. The eggs are usually laid in a hollow tree among decaying vegetation. Hatchlings measure between 35 and 45 cm (13 to 18 inches) and are venomous from birth. Males of this species are known to engage in combat for mating rights, similar to the combat practiced by male
king cobraThe King Cobra is the world's longest venomous snake, with a length that can be as large as about 5.6 m . This species is widespread throughout Southeast Asia and parts of India, and is found mostly in forested areas. Note that this species is highly aggressive and dangerous...
s. The combat involves wrestling matches, with snakes twisting and pushing each other to the ground, which may last several hours. Combat does not usually include biting.
Venom
The green mamba is highly venomous; the venom contains
calcicludineCalcicludine is a protein toxin from the venom of the green mamba that inhibits high-voltage-activated calcium channels, especially L-type calcium channels.- Source :Calcicludine is a toxin in the venom of the green mamba ....
and
dendrotoxinDendrotoxins are a class of neurotoxins produced by mamba snakes that block particular subtypes of voltage-gated potassium channels in neurons, thereby enhancing the release of acetylcholine at neuromuscular junctions...
amongst other neurotoxins. Its venom is similar in composition and action to that of the more famous
black mambaThe Black Mamba , is an elapid snake and is one of Africa's most dangerous and feared snakes. It has a wide range of known locations throughout Africa. The black mamba is found in Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Botswana,Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa and the...
but only one-tenth as toxic, and the amount injected is generally less, due to the snake's smaller size. Despite this, any bite from a green mamba is potentially fatal and should be regarded as a
medical emergencyA medical emergency is an injury or illness that is acute and poses an immediate risk to a person's life or long term health. These emergencies may require assistance from another person, who should ideally be suitably qualified to do so, although some of these emergencies can be dealt with by the...
requiring immediate hospital treatment.
Cultural references
• In the book
The Poisonwood BibleThe Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver isa bestselling novel about a missionary family, the Prices, who in 1959 move from Georgia to the fictional village of Kilanga in the Belgian Congo...
by Barbara Kingsolver, the novel reaches its climax when the character Ruth May Price is bitten by a green mamba, on the same day that word arrives that Prime Minister
Patrice LumumbaPatrice Émery Lumumba was an African anti-colonial leader and the first legally elected Prime Minister of the Republic of the Congo after he helped win its independence from Belgium in June 1960. Only ten weeks later, Lumumba's government was deposed in a coup during the Congo Crisis...
has been assassinated.
• In one episode of Survivor Gabon, Randy states that he hopes that all the other Survivor players with the exception of Matty and Corinne get bitten by a green mamba.
• In the book "Going Solo," a memoir by Roald Dahl, Dahl dramatically describes an event during his posting in Tanzania while working for Shell Oil in which he witnesses a green mamba slither up the stairs and into a house occupied by another Shell employee and his three small children.
External links