Unique odd-scaled snake species reported

On Oct 14, 2022, Professor Mo Xiaoyang from Hunan Normal University in Changsha, Hunan province, and several members of his research team were conducting a biodiversity resource survey in Tongdao county, Hunan.

They noticed a snake that had been flattened by a passing car. Research team member Li Hui, a student of Mo's, is a passionate wildlife enthusiast and is especially fond of reptiles. He observed the dead snake carefully.

"It was an odd-scaled snake (the common name for snakes of the Achalinus genus), but looked a little different from those we had seen before, with a creamy yellow ring around its neck," Li told Xiaoxiang Morning News.