The Little File Snake (Acrochordus granulatus), also known as the Marine File Snake, is a fully aquatic species found in coastal waters, estuaries, and mangroves across Southeast Asia and northern Australia. It is characterized by its loose, baggy skin covered with rough, keeled scales that feel like sandpaper, an adaptation for gripping slippery fish, its primary prey. The body is thick and cylindrical, typically gray or brown with faint lighter markings, and it can grow up to about 1 meter in length. This snake is slow-moving on land but well adapted to life in water, where it can remain submerged for extended periods.
Little File Snake
Acrochordus granulatus
🐍 Non-venomous
Description
Venomous?
Non-venomous. It subdues prey by holding or constricting rather than using venom.
A Danger to Humans?
Not aggressive and poses no danger to humans. It is generally docile and avoids confrontation, preferring to retreat when disturbed.
Population Size
Stable
Life Span
-
WEIGHT
30.5 g
LENGTH
Females 750 mm, Male 700 mm
Aq
Aquatic
Ca
Carnivore
No
Nocturnal
Classification
KINGDOM
:
Animalia
PHYLUM
:
Chordata
CLASS
:
Reptilia
ORDER
:
Squamata
FAMILY
:
Acrochordidae
GENUS
:
Acrochordus
SPECIES
:
Acrochordus granulatus
Distribution
File Snake lives on coastal, brackish, and occasionally fresh water, clear or muddy. Often found in mangroves and estuaries, and in Peninsular Malaysia inhabits waters 10 km offshore at depths to 20 m. on Bali knowns from both south and north coasts.
Geography
Continents : Asia
Country : Coast of India (including the Nicobar Islands), Sri Lanka, Bangladesh throught south-east Asia and north to China (Hainan Island), Borneo, the Philippines, Indonesia, New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and northern Australia.
Habits and Lifestyle
File snake usually may be seen swimming near the surface, or with lower body coiled around submerged objects such as mangrove roots. Valvular nostrils prevent water entering when submerged. Some individuals have barnacles attached to the skin. Reputedly has the ability to swim backwards by reversing the undulations of the body. In the Philippines forages by swimming slowly along the bottom, investigating holes in the mud.
Lifestyle
Nocturnal, aquatic
Biome
Freshwater
Climate Zone
Tropical
Diet and Nutrition
The file snake are carnivores, they eat on fish and occasionally crabs, in the bottom feeds on dwelling gobies and goby like fish, though crustaceans, other snakes and even carrion are occasionally taken.
Diet : Carnivores
Mating Habits
These snakes is ovoviviparious spesies, females from the Philippines have an unusually long gestation period of 5 to possibly 8 months, and probably breed every second year. Litters of 1 – 12 live young are recorded, measuring about 200 mm total length at birth
Reproduction session : every second year
Incubation periods : 5 to possibly 8 months
Independent age : at birth
Baby name : –
Baby carrying : 1 – 12 young
Population
Population status : Least Concern (LC)
NE
DD
LC
NT
VU
EN
CR
EW
EX
Population threats
This species is caught incidentally by trawlers (Stuebing and Voris 1989) and a directed harvest also occurs for the pet trade. In India, the main threat is mortality due to fisheries bycatch. Due to the species’ preference for shallow areas, (generally below 15 m) it is caught as bycatch in shallow water fishing operations including shore seines and gill nets, in addition to trawling. A recent study by de Silva et al. (2010) found as many as 15 snakes dead in one fishing net, with approximately 200 boats operating in the area
Population number
This is a widespread species and is common throughout its range. It is collected for the pet trade in some regions and also caught as bycatch in trawls, but these are not thought to be major threats. This species is listed as least Concern.
PHOTO GALLERY
Reference
- Acrochordus granulatus on The IUCN Red List site
- Somaweera, R. 2017. A Naturalist’s Guide To The Reptiles and Amphibians of Bali. John Beaufoy Publishing, Oxford, England.
- McKay, J.L. 2006. Reptil and Amphibi di Bali. Krieger Publishing Company, Florida, USA.