Semi-aquatic predator found outside home in Brazil in first-of-its-kind sighting
On the outskirts of a town in northeastern Brazil, a semi-aquatic predator moved along the road near a house. The chance encounter turned out to be a first-of-its-kind sighting — and confirmation of an expert theory.
Scientists received a report about a semi-aquatic snake found on the pavement of “an urban area of the municipality of Areia, Paraíba,” in January, according to a study published May 21 in the peer-reviewed journal Check List.
Intrigued by the accidental encounter, researchers took a closer look at the roughly 9-inch-long reptile and identified it as a juvenile Erythrolamprus mossoroensis, the study said. A photo shows the brown reptile.
Erythrolamprus mossoroensis is a poorly known species of snake and a “relative rarity in field studies,” according to a 2022 study. It has no English common name but is known in Portuguese as “Cobra-d’Água” or “Jararacuçu D’água,” names which roughly translate to “water snake.”
Erythrolamprus mossoroensis snakes are semi-aquatic predators, “active both during the day and at night, with a diet consisting of amphibians and fish,” researchers said.
Experts theorized that the species might live in the state of Paraíba because of the region’s habitat and the species’ presence in neighboring states, but no one had confirmed this — until now.
The snake sighting in Areia, Paraíba, was the state’s “first confirmed record of (Erythrolamprus) mossoroensis,” researchers said.
The team said their finding “suggests that more specimens may be found in the region, reinforcing the need for further surveys to expand knowledge of this and other species in the area.”
Paraíba is a coastal state in northeastern Brazil and a roughly 1,450-mile drive northeast from Rio de Janeiro.
The research team included Élida Silva, José Robério Barboza Júnior, Mateus Dutra, Vanessa Barbosa, Frederico França and Rafaela França.
This story was originally published May 23, 2025 at 3:34 PM with the headline "Semi-aquatic predator found outside home in Brazil in first-of-its-kind sighting."
