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Article: coral snake
- Article from:
- The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition
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Copyright informationThe Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright 2008 Columbia University Press. (Hide copyright information)
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coral snake name for poisonous New World snakes of the same family as the Old World
cobras
. About 30 species inhabit Mexico, Central America, and N South America; two are found in the United States. The Eastern coral snake (
Micrurus fulvius
), or harlequin snake, is found in the SE United States and N Mexico. It is a burrowing snake with a small, blunt head and a cylindrical body, averaging 2 1/2 ft (75 cm) in length. The body is ringed with bands of black, red, and yellow; the tail has yellow and black rings only. The Sonoran, or Western, coral snake (
Micruroides euryxanthus
) is a rather rare species found in the SW United States and NW Mexico. It is about 18 in. (45 ...