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Western Ribbon Coralsnake (Micrurus helleri)
Reptiles of Ecuador | Serpentes | Elapidae | Micrurus | Micrurus helleri
English common names: Western Ribbon Coralsnake, Heller’s Coralsnake.
Spanish common names: Coral acintada occidental, coral de Heller.
Recognition: ♂♂ 151.7 cmMaximum distance from the snout to the tip of the tail. ♀♀ 137.5 cmMaximum distance from the snout to the tip of the tail..1 In Ecuador, the majority of true coralsnakes (genus Micrurus) can be distinguished from most, but not all, false coralsnakes by having brightly colored rings that encircle the body, small eyes that are about the same size as the post-ocular scales, and no loreal scale.1,2 This is one of four Amazonian Micrurus in Ecuador having the black rings arranged in triads, rather than in monads.1 The other three snakes are M. obscurus, M. ortoni, and M. surinamensis, all of which have less than 220 ventral scales, 4–7 rings on the tail, and lack a clear white band on the snout (more than 225 ventral scales, 8–11 rings on the tail, and distinct white snout band in M. helleri).1–3 The presence of complete black triads separates this species from Erythrolamprus aesculapii, a false coralsnake that, in Ecuador, has black rings arranged in dyads.4
Figure 1: Individuals of Micrurus helleri from Ecuador: Jatun Sacha Biological Station, Napo province (); Río Yasuní, Orellana province ().
Natural history: Micrurus helleri is an uncommon terrestrial to semi-fossorial snake that inhabits pristine to heavily disturbed rainforests, which may be terra-firme or seasonally flooded.5 This species also occurs in clearings, pastures,6 orchards, and rural gardens near the forest border, usually close to bodies of water.1,3,7,8 Individuals have been seen active on soil, leaf-litter, or in water during the day or at night.1,3,7 These snakes actively forage in search of prey, which includes snakes (Amerotyphlops reticulatus, Leptodeira approximans, and species in the genus Atractus),1,8 amphisbaenians (Amphisbaena bassleri),1 lizards (Bachia trisanale),9 fish (species in the genera Synbranchus and Brachyhypopomus),8 and caecilians (Oscaecilia bassleri).8 Western Ribbon Coralsnakes rely on their warning coloration as a primary defense mechanism. Individuals are usually calm and try to flee when threatened. If disturbed, they engage in complex and seemingly erratic behavior: they hide the head beneath body coils, crawl spasmodically forward and then backward, and display their bright tails as a decoy.1,7 They are also capable of striking if provoked. Their venom is neurotoxic and, in humans, causes persistent excruciating pain, blurred vision, ptosis (drooping eyelids),2 local paralysis, and difficulty breathing and walking.10,11 In mice, the venom has been shown to have myotoxic (muscle-breaking) activity.12 In northeastern Perú, two females contained 5–6 oviductal eggs,8 but the real clutch size is not known.
Conservation: Least Concern Believed to be safe from extinction given current circumstances.. Since it has only been recently elevated to full-species status,1,13 Micrurus helleri has not been formally included in any IUCN Red List threat category. Here, it is proposed to be included in the LC category because the species is widely distributed, occurs in major protected areas, has presumed stable populations, and is currently facing no major widespread extinction threats. The most important threat to the long-term survival of some populations is habitat destruction mostly due to mining, oil extraction, and the expansion of the agricultural frontier.1 Individuals of M. helleri also suffer from traffic mortality and direct killing at the hands of local people.1,7
Distribution: Micrurus helleri is native to the western Amazon basin and adjacent foothills of the Andes in Colombia, Ecuador (Fig. 2), Perú, and Bolivia.
Figure 2: Distribution of Micrurus helleri in Ecuador. See Appendix 1 for a complete list of the presence localities included in the map.
Etymology: The name Micrurus is derived from the Greek words mikros (=small) and oura (=tail), referring to the short tail in members of this group.2 The species’ epithet helleri honors American zoologist Edmund Heller (1875–1939), who collected the holotype and participated in the Marshall Field Expedition to Perú from 1922 to 1923.9
See it in the wild: Western Ribbon Coralsnakes are usually found no more than once every few weeks at any given area. In Ecuador, the localities having the greatest number of recent observations are Jatun Sacha Biological Reserve, Yasuní Scientific Station, and the immediate environs of the town Puyo. It appears that the best way to find Western Ribbon Coralsnakes is to walk along forest trails right after sunset, especially after a warm and rainy day.
Acknowledgments: This account was published with the support of Secretaría Nacional de Educación Superior Ciencia y Tecnología (programa INEDITA; project: Respuestas a la crisis de biodiversidad: la descripción de especies como herramienta de conservación; No 00110378), Programa de las Naciones Unidas (PNUD), and Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ).
Author: Alejandro ArteagaaAffiliation: Khamai Foundation, Quito, Ecuador.
Photographers: Jose VieiraaAffiliation: Tropical Herping (TH), Quito, Ecuador.,bAffiliation: ExSitu, Quito, Ecuador. and Sebastián Di DoménicocAffiliation: Keeping Nature, Bogotá, Colombia.
How to cite? Arteaga A (2021) Western Ribbon Coralsnake (Micrurus helleri). In: Arteaga A, Bustamante L, Vieira J (Eds) Reptiles of Ecuador: Life in the middle of the world. Available from: www.reptilesofecuador.com. DOI: 10.47051/RGYB8672
Literature cited:
- Valencia JH, Garzón-Tello K, Barragán-Paladines ME (2016) Serpientes venenosas del Ecuador: sistemática, taxonomía, historial natural, conservación, envenenamiento y aspectos antropológicos. Fundación Herpetológica Gustavo Orcés, Quito, 653 pp.
- Campbell JA, Lamar WW (2004) The venomous reptiles of the western hemisphere. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, 774 pp.
- Duellman WE (1978) The biology of an equatorial herpetofauna in Amazonian Ecuador. Publications of the Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas 65: 1–352.
- Curcio FF, Scali S, Rodrigues MT (2015) Taxonomic status of Erythrolamprus bizona Jan (1863 (Serpentes, Xenodontinae): assembling a puzzle with many missing pieces. Herpetological Monographs 29: 40–64. DOI: 10.1655/HERPMONOGRAPHS-D-15-00002
- Duellman WE (2005) Cusco amazónico: the lives of amphibians and reptiles in an Amazonian rainforest. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, 433 pp.
- Cortes-Ávila L, Toledo JJ (2013) Estudio de la diversidad de serpientes en áreas de bosque perturbado y pastizal en San Vicente del Caguán (Caquetá), Colombia. Actualidades Biológicas 35: 185–197.
- Field notes, Reptiles of Ecuador book project.
- Dixon JR, Soini P (1986) The reptiles of the upper Amazon Basin, Iquitos region, Peru. Milwaukee Public Museum, Milwaukee, 154 pp.
- Roze JA (1996) Coral snakes of the Americas: biology, indentification, and venoms. Krieger Publishing Company, Malabar, 328 pp.
- Manock SR, Suárez G, Graham D, Ávila-Aguero ML, Warrell DA (2008) Neurotoxic envenoming by South American coral snake (Micrurus lemniscatus helleri): case report from eastern Ecuador and review. Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene 102: 1127–1132. DOI: 10.1016/j.trstmh.2008.03.026
- Warrell DA (2004) Snakebites in Central and South America: epidemiology, clinical features, and clinical management. In: Campbell JA, Lamar WW (Eds) The Venomous reptiles of the Western Hemisphere. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, 709–761.
- Gutiérrez JM, Rojas G, da Silva Jr NJ, Núñez J (1992) Experimental myonecrosis induced by the venoms of South American Micrurus (coral snakes). Toxicon 30: 1299–1302. DOI: 10.1016/0041-0101(92)90446-c
- Hurtado-Gómez JP, Vargas Ramírez M, Ruiz Gómez FJ, Fouquet A, Fritz U (2021) Multilocus phylogeny clarifies relationships and diversity within the Micrurus lemniscatus complex (Serpentes: Elapidae). Salamandra 57: 229–239.
Appendix 1: Locality data used to create the distribution map of Micrurus helleri in Ecuador (Fig. 2). Go to the section on symbols and abbreviations for a list of acronyms used.
| Country | Province | Locality | Source |
| Colombia | Caquetá | Buenavista | iNaturalist |
| Colombia | Caquetá | Río Orteguaza | Díaz-Ricaurte & Fiorillo 2019 |
| Colombia | Caquetá | Solano | Díaz-Ricaurte & Fiorillo 2019 |
| Colombia | Caquetá | Tres Esquinas | iNaturalist |
| Colombia | Caquetá | Tres Esquinas | iNaturalist |
| Colombia | Caquetá | Vereda El Águila | Cortes-Ávila & Toledo 2013 |
| Colombia | Caquetá | Vía antigua Neiva–Huila | Díaz-Ricaurte & Fiorillo 2019 |
| Colombia | Putumayo | Mocoa | Díaz-Ricaurte & Fiorillo 2019 |
| Colombia | Putumayo | Orito | iNaturalist |
| Colombia | Putumayo | Puerto Asís | Campbell & Lamar 2004 |
| Colombia | Putumayo | Río Guamués | IAvH 219 |
| Colombia | Putumayo | Río Putumayo | FMNH 37434 |
| Colombia | Putumayo | Vereda Churoyaco | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Colombia | Putumayo | Vereda San Juan de Guamués | iNaturalist |
| Colombia | Putumayo | Vereda Valle de las Palmeras | IAvH-R-9212 |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Centro Shuar Kiim | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Limón | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Macas | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Macuma | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Metsankim | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Paantim | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Pakintza | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | San Jose de Morona | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Sawastian | Ortega-Andrade 2010 |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Shimpin | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Shuin Mamus | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Sucúa | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Morona Santiago | Wisui | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Archidona | MHNG 2413.090 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Baeza–Loreto road | This work |
| Ecuador | Napo | Centro Palmeras | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Napo | Cotundo | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Gareno Lodge | This work |
| Ecuador | Napo | Jatun Sacha Biological Station | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Napo | Mangochikta | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Misahuallí | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Misahuallí, 2.6 km W of | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Napo | Río Suno | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Tena, 9 km SW of | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Terra Luna Lodge | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Napo | Universidad Estatal Amazónica | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Napo | Wild Sumaco Wildlife Sanctuary | Camper et al. 2021 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Yachana Lodge | Photo by Douglas McMeekin |
| Ecuador | Napo | Yachana Reserve | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Napo | Zoo el Arca | Photo by Diego Piñán |
| Ecuador | Orellana | 10 de Agosto | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Apaika | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Asociación San Roque | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Bloque 31 | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Campamento Apaika Petroamazonas | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Coca, 3 km E of | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Orellana | El Eno, environs of | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Guardianía de Tambococha | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Joya de los Sachas | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Orellana | NPF | Photo by Paulina Romero |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Nuevo Rocafuerte | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Pañacocha | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Pozo petrolero Obe | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Puerto Itaya, 3.5 km S of | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Río Bigal | García et al. 2021 |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Río Yasuní, near Lake Jatuncocha | This work |
| Ecuador | Orellana | San Jose de Guayusa | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Orellana | San José de Payamino | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Tiputini Biodiversity Station | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Yarentaro, 16 km SE of | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Orellana | Yasuní Scientific Station | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Campamento K4 | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Canelos | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Comunidad Jatun Yaku | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Conambo | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Hostería Safari | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Mera | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Mirador Indichuris | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Nuevo Corrientes, Bufeo | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Puyo | Photo by Danilo Medina |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Puyo, 10 km N of | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Río Huitoyacu | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Río Puyo | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Sarayacu | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Sendero a Hola Vida | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Pastaza | Shell | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | America Vargas, 1 km N of | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Bosque Protector Aguarico | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Brisas del Cuyabeno, 4 km N of | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Campo Fanny 18 | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Estación Amazonas OCP | Valencia & Garzón 2011 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Estación PUCE en Cuyabeno | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | La Selva Lodge | Nogueira et al. 2019 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Lago Agrio | Duellman 1978 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Limococha | This work |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Santa Cecilia | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Sinangüe | Valencia et al. 2016 |
| Ecuador | Sucumbíos | Tucán Lodge | Photo by Harry Turner |
| Ecuador | Zamora Chinchipe | Las Orquídeas | This work |
| Ecuador | Zamora Chinchipe | Maycu | This work |
| Ecuador | Zamora Chinchipe | Reserva Atasmo | iNaturalist |
| Ecuador | Zamora Chinchipe | Valle del Quimi | Betancourt et al. 2018 |
| Perú | Amazonas | Aguaruna Village | MVZ 163326 |
| Perú | Amazonas | Puerto Galilea | USNM 566627 |
| Perú | Loreto | Nuevo Andoas | Campbell & Lamar 2004 |
| Perú | Loreto | Ullpayacu | Campbell & Lamar 2004 |