Dice snake

The species is distributed in Central and Southern Europe (excluding the western parts), eastern part of North Africa and South Asia from east to Northwestern India and Western China. In Bulgaria the species is widespread throughout the country up to 1 000-1 100 m above sea level.

In Bulgaria the Dice snake reaches total length of 140 cm, and in other parts of its range up to 150 cm. Females are larger than males, with slightly shorter tails. The dorsal side of the body is grey-brown, greenish-brown, or yellow-brown, with dark, slightly contrasting spots. There are also completely black specimens (melanists). The head of the Dice snake is the color of the back, without spots; in the occipital region often with a dark V-spot. The abdomen is whitish, yellowish or orange with dark (to black) transverse spots that often merge to form one or two longitudinal stripes; in rare cases, the whole abdomen is monochromatic (dark grey or almost black). Young individuals do not differ in color from adults. The Dice snake (Natrix tessellata) inhabits the rocky parts of the sea coast, but is most often found in the middle and lower reaches of rivers and in rocky sea bays. On the shore it adheres close to the water, often no more than 20 m away. The species is daily active, feeding mainly on fish (60% of the food) and amphibians (mostly water frogs and kingfishers). It hunts in the shallows and in dense aquatic vegetation. The snake consumes its victims alive. In case of danger, runs into the water. Copulation is from May to June. Lays in June-July from 4 to 18 (rarely up to 37) eggs with dimensions from 15×30 to 25×45 mm. High humidity is required for incubation of eggs. The young hatch in July-August and are 14-22 cm long. When caught, the Dice water snake rarely bites, but throws out a secretion with an unpleasant odor and sometimes fakes its own death.

Unknown.

The Dice snake (Natrix tessellata) is a protected species included in Annex 3 of the Biodiversity Act (BDA) and Annex II of the Bern Convention. The species is also included in Annex IV of Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (Habitats Directive). The Dice snake is included in the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) Red List of Threatened Species with category Least Concern (LC).

*Note: For the description of amphibians and reptiles is used information from: Golemanski, V. & al. (eds). 2015. Red Data Book of the Republic of Bulgaria. Vol. 2. Animals. BAS & MoEW, Sofia [English ed.: ISBN 978-954-9746-22-8 (IBER – BAS), 978-954-8497-18-3 (MoEW)]; Biserkov, V. (Editor), 2007. A Field Guide to Amphibians and Reptiles of Bulgaria. Sofia, Green Balkans, 196 pp.; the website of the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature).