Stegonotus aplini
WHAT IS IT?
If snakes were hot drinks, Stegonotus aplini would be a latte macchiato. It’s the seamless transition from milkwhite to coffee-brown along its length that sets this serpent apart from its closest relatives, which tend to be a uniform shade of grey or brown.
WHERE IS IT?
In the region of southern Papua New Guinea where S. aplini hunts on forest floors at night, local people are highly fearful of the species – even though it is apparently harmless to humans. Perhaps this is because of its superficial resemblance to a more distantly related, venomous snake that also occurs in the region.
Stuart Blackman