Creatures in Crisis
Photograph of Roatan coral snake (Micrurus ruatanus), recorded as Critically Endangered
Roatan coral snake (Micrurus ruatanus). Image via Wikimedia Commons.

Critically Endangered

Roatan coral snake

Micrurus ruatanus

Roatan coral snake is a lizard or snake in the family Elapidae — Micrurus ruatanus, recorded as Critically Endangered.

Status
Critically Endangered
Scientific name
Micrurus ruatanus
CITES
Appendix III
Taxonomy
Squamata · Elapidae · Micrurus

Appearance

Roatan coral snake is a bicolored New World coral snake. Its color pattern consists of alternating wide and narrow black rings, that are separated by red rings. The wide black rings are 3 dorsal scales wide, and the narrow black rings are 1–2 dorsals wide.

Medium-sized for the genus Micrurus, adults usually have a total length (tail included) of 45–60 cm (18–24 in). The maximum recorded total length is 68 cm (27 in).

Range and habitat

Micrurus roatanensis usually lives in forest, at elevations from near sea level to 20 m (66 ft). The species is endemic to the island of Roatán, one of the Bay Islands off the coast of Honduras.

Pins are Wikidata “endemic to” fields. Orange dots, when present, are GBIF occurrence tiles — survey bias included.

Diet

Roatan coral snake is known to prey on the lizard Cnemidophorus ruatanus.

In crisis

CITES lists this taxon on Appendix III. Confirm the current appendix on the CITES checklist.

Roatan coral snake is Critically Endangered on this catalog because that is the IUCN category stored on Wikidata. Confirm the official criteria and any later count on iucnredlist.org.

Sources

Written for this catalog from the English Wikipedia article on Roatan coral snake, Wikidata item Q2384624. Family and order context is original field-guide writing about the group, not a copied assessment of this one species. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA. Not an IUCN assessment. Counts, when quoted, can change — confirm them on the recovery programme and on iucnredlist.org.

Photograph via Wikimedia Commons. Wikipedia · Wikidata · IUCN Red List.

Also in this catalog

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Vaquita

Phocoena sinus
Photograph of Javan rhinoceros (Rhinoceros sondaicus), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Javan rhinoceros

Rhinoceros sondaicus
Photograph of Sumatran orangutan (Pongo abelii), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Sumatran orangutan

Pongo abelii
Photograph of Axolotl (Ambystoma mexicanum), recorded as Critically EndangeredCR

Axolotl

Ambystoma mexicanum

Quick answers

What is Roatan coral snake?
Roatan coral snake is a lizard or snake in the family Elapidae — Micrurus ruatanus.
What is the conservation status of Roatan coral snake?
Critically Endangered, as the IUCN category stored on Wikidata for Micrurus ruatanus. Confirm the official assessment on iucnredlist.org.
Where does Roatan coral snake live?
Micrurus roatanensis usually lives in forest, at elevations from near sea level to 20 m (66 ft).
Why is Roatan coral snake in crisis?
It is Critically Endangered on Wikidata. Read the official Red List assessment for the criteria.
Is this the IUCN Red List page for Micrurus ruatanus?
No. This is a researched catalog account. The Red List is the assessment.
Is Roatan coral snake a pet?
An animal on this catalog is in crisis in the wild. Keeping one is usually the wrong question.