Blossom Krait

The blossom krait, or Sri Lanka keelback, known in Sinhala as mal karawala, is a poorly known, moderately venomous snake endemic to Sri Lanka. It lives in wet forests and some intermediate forests of the lowlands and midhills. The head is distinct from the neck and the eye large with a round pupil. The back is olive-brown with black cross-bars enclosing large yellow or red, black-edged spots, and the skin between the scales is red (Wikipedia, general species account).

It is slow-moving. When threatened it raises and inflates the front of the body to show the red skin on the neck. It eats frogs, and hatchlings are known to eat orthopterans. About 7 eggs are laid at a time, hatching in March into young about 102 mm long. Its venom has caused life-threatening bites. Nationally Endangered (Sri Lanka National Red List 2012, listed as Balanophis ceylonensis).