Pseudaspis cana

The Mole Snake is a large snake – it may grow to 2m in length – that kills its prey, which includes small reptiles and mammals like moles and rodents, by constriction. Left unmolested, Mole Snakes are harmless to humans; in fact they’re very useful to have around as an effective control measure for pests. Attempting to catch one by hand however is likely to end up in deep bite marks that need stitches to close.

Mole Snakes get their name from their habit of staying mainly underground in animal burrows, where of course they also find their preferred prey. They mate in spring and females give birth to between 20 and 90 live babies in autumn. Males will fight each other viciously.

Mole Snakes are widely distributed in Africa south of the equator and occur all over South Africa. The IUCN considers it to be of least concern.