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Masquerading, deadly snake discovered and named after shape-shifting Chinese goddess - Livescience.com
Apr 08, 2021 41 secs

A deadly new snake has been discovered after spending decades masquerading as a much less dangerous species, according to researchers — who named the snake after a shape-shifting serpent goddess from a Chinese folktale.

The new species is a type of krait snake found in Southwest China and northern Myanmar and had previously been categorized as the many-banded krait (Bungarus multicinctus).

The researchers named the new snake Suzhen's krait (Bungarus suzhenae) after Bai Su Zhen — a powerful snake goddess from a traditional Chinese myth. .

Researchers hope the new classification will enable local communities to identify the deadly snake and avoid potentially fatal interactions, as well as help scientists to develop a new antivenom to treat Suzhen's krait bites.

Suzhen's krait was one of four different species that were, until recently, collectively labeled as one species called many-banded kraits.

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