Madagascarophis lolo is a species of snakes known for being endemic to the African area of Madagascar. The creature is colloquially referred to as the ghost snake due to its strikingly pale body shade. It was initially found inside of a lime rock formation in 2016.
Madagascarophis lolo gets its specific name lolo from the Malagasy word for "ghost". There are two reasons for this name, namely, the pale gray color of the ghost snake, and the elusiveness of the species relative to other species in an area of Ankarana that is relatively well explored.
Nocturnality is an animal behavior characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal",...
Oviparous animals are female animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive...
Precocial species are those in which the young are relatively mature and mobile from the moment of birth or hatching. Precocial species are normall...
Terrestrial animals are animals that live predominantly or entirely on land (e.g., cats, ants, snails), as compared with aquatic animals, which liv...
M
starts withMadagascarophis lolo can be identified from other species in its genus by its gray, overall body color with black vertebral stripe and dorsal, alternating lighter gray splotches. It has 25 midbody scale rows, 189 ventral scales and 56 divided subcaudal scales. With the exception of M. fuchsi, it differs from all other Madagascarophis species by having extended contact of posterior infralabial scales. M. lolo can be distinguished from M. fuchsi by its slightly lower number of infralabial scales, with M. lolo having around 10 infralabial scales to the approximately 12–13 infralabial scales of M. fuchsi.
Their habitat is variable, as they are terrestrial and semi-arboreal, but mainly are found on karst rock formations. Researchers propose that the rarity of M. lolo sightings could be due to their rough terrain habitat, as the karst rock formations are difficult to navigate, especially in the night, when M. lolo would be active.
Madagascarophis lolo is probably endemic to karst areas of Analamerana and Ankarana of Madagascar.
Alike other species of Madagascarophis, M. lolo is nocturnal.