Snakes come in all different colors. Even snakes of the same species can have quite different coloration depending on region, or sometimes just living next to each other in Thailand’s wild.
This is a Burmese Python sent to me by a friend. Quite dark compared to most I’ve seen here in Southern Thailand.
Recently a reader sent me some photos of a snake that very nearly bit him on one of the islands of Koh Phi Phi. When I looked at it – it was unmistakable what it was – a mangrove pit viper. However, it was brown tinted – quite brown. The guy verified it was brown, and not just a camera quirk. I’ve only seen them in a purple shade and with some yellow. Never brown.
Goes to show you that it is very difficult to identify the 200 some snakes native to Thailand. It’s downright impossible many times from the photos I get. Even snakes I catch, some biologists cannot figure out what snake it is.
PLEASE… do not touch snakes if you are not 100% sure what it is – and only if it is non-venomous. There are many snakes that have venom in Thailand – but that are classified as non-venomous, because typically they are not dangerous to man. If you happen to be allergic to the venom though – guess what? You could be in anaphylactic shock before you know it.
Recently a “non-venomous” snake put a teenager in the Bangkok hospital in Phuket for 2 weeks with failing kidneys.
Be careful with snakes – all snakes – there are some that are quite obvious what they are, and there are others that I cannot figure out… and there are some that the biologists cannot figure out.