The Kenya Sand Boa (Eryx colubrinus) is a non-venomous African snake. It is also called the East African Sand Boa because it is found in Somalia, Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, and northern Tanzania.

The Kenya Sand Boa is a short, thick snake with a short head. It is light orange-brown with dark-brown blotches all along its body. It has a cream-white underbelly.

Kenya Sand Boa

It grows to about 90 centimetres (36 inches) long.

It is found in the desert and semi-desert of Kenya. It also likes dry savannahs and along rivers in north and east Kenya.

It eats mice, rats, birds, and lizards.

The Kenya Sand Boa is viviparous, which means that the female gives birth to about 4-20 live young. The baby snakelets are about 20-25 centimetres (8-10 inches) long.

Photographer: Martina Nicolls

Martina Nicolls: SIMILAR BUT DIFFERENT IN THE ANIMAL KINGDOM