Javelin Sand Boa

Q: Does the javelin sand boa occur in Georgia?

Yes. It is biologically confirmed on the 2026 checklist. It occurs only in the semi-arid south-east — not throughout the country.

Q: Where can it be found in Georgia?

In dry open country with loose soil in the south-east. The map marks Kakheti, Kvemo Kartli, and Tbilisi. Named points are Tbilisi (CaBOL), Lake Kumisi (photograph, June 2020), and Lisi Lake (photograph, 2 July 2023). Do not look for it in the west or the high mountains. It is rarely seen by day.

Q: Is it venomous or dangerous to people?

No. It is a non-venomous boa; it kills prey by constriction. It poses no medical venom risk. Still do not pick it up: it is Red Listed and can be mistaken for a viper.

Q: How can it be identified?

A short stout snake with small eyes, a blunt tail, and a head covered in small scales. The blind snake is worm-like with almost no visible eyes. The cat snake has large eyes and a slender body.

Q: How large does it grow?

In Georgia it is usually under 50 cm; the 2021 review places it among small snakes up to about 70 cm.

Q: What does it eat?

The Georgian diet has not been measured. Elsewhere in the range, small mammals dominate; lizard eggs are also taken. It kills by constriction.

Q: When is it active?

Mainly at night and at dusk. It spends most of the day underground. An exact Georgian seasonal calendar is not published here.

Q: Is it on the Georgian Red List?

Yes. The 2014 Red List lists it as Vulnerable (VU, B2a) — a small fragmented range. Globally IUCN lists it as Least Concern.

Eryx jaculus

South-eastern GeorgiaRisk to humansHarmless

At a glance

Key facts in one look

Habitat

SE semi-arid

Length

usually <50 cm

Venom

None

Conservation

VU (national)

Activity

Nocturnal

Family

Boidae

Overview

Javelin Sand Boa in Georgia

The javelin sand boa (Eryx jaculus) is a non-venomous burrowing boa found in Georgia only in the semi-arid south-east. The 2026 checklist treats it as biologically confirmed and lists the subspecies E. j. turcicus. The 2021 Georgian snake survey places it in the same landscape as the Levantine viper and Urartian ratsnake — not across the whole country. A named barcode and a checklist figure are from Tbilisi. Photos on this atlas are from Lake Kumisi, June 2020 (Giorgi Iankoshvili) and Lisi Lake, 2 July 2023 (Ioane Rostiashvili). In Georgia it is usually under 50 cm; it has no venom and kills prey by constriction. Its burrowing look is easy to confuse with the European blind snake, but the build is different.

Last updated 15 September 2026

Gallery

Javelin Sand Boa in photos

Javelin Sand Boa (Eryx jaculus) — Lake Kumisi — გიორგი იანქოშვილი — Photo: Giorgi Iankoshvili
Lake Kumisi · June 2020
Georgia field photo

Javelin Sand Boa (Eryx jaculus) — northern Bulgaria — Alexandru Buzatu — Photo: Alexandru Buzatu · iNaturalist
northern Bulgaria · 11 July 2018

Javelin Sand Boa (Eryx jaculus) — Iki-Burul District, Kalmykia — Leonid A. Neymark — Photo: Leonid A. Neymark · iNaturalist
Iki-Burul District, Kalmykia · 16 May 2015

Javelin Sand Boa (Eryx jaculus) — Ras el Ma, Morocco — Roberto Sindaco — Photo: Roberto Sindaco · iNaturalist
Ras el Ma, Morocco · 26 April 2003

Distribution

Where Javelin Sand Boa lives in Georgia

Highlighted regions show where this species has been recorded.

Identification

How to identify Javelin Sand Boa

A short, stout harmless boa with small eyes and a blunt tail. Size and visible eyes separate it from the blind snake. The first photo is from Lake Kumisi (June 2020), then Lisi Lake (2 July 2023). Later frames show the species from other parts of the range.

The body is short and stout, almost cylindrical. The head is weakly set off from the neck and covered in small scales — not the large plates of most colubrids. The tail is short with a blunt tip; it can look like a second head. The 2021 Georgian review places it among small snakes to about 70 cm, usually under 50 cm.
The eyes are small but visible. The pupil is a vertical slit. A large rostral scale helps it push into soil. Dorsal scales are smooth in front and weakly keeled toward the tail. The belly scales are narrow.
The ground colour is grey, sand, brownish, or reddish. The back has darker irregular blotches or bars. A dark streak often runs from the eye to the mouth corner. The belly is pale. Pattern varies — do not rely on colour alone.
The European blind snake (Xerotyphlops vermicularis) is worm-like, with eyes reduced under the scales, and is usually much smaller. This species has small but obvious eyes and a boa’s stout body.
The cat snake (Telescopus fallax) is also nocturnal and has a vertical pupil, but the eyes are large and the body is slender, with a more distinct head. The steppe viper has a broad triangular head and keeled scales — it is venomous. The collared dwarf snake occurs in the same dry zone but is a thin colubrid with a round pupil.

Similar species

Often confused with

Xerotyphlops vermicularis

European Blind Snake

Georgia

Telescopus fallax

European cat snake

Eastern and southern Georgia

Quiz

Next: which snake is it?

Javelin Sand Boa is in the Georgia snake quiz. Ten field photos, four names — eye practice, not field ID.

Start the quiz

Biology

Habitat, diet, behavior, and conservation

Habitat and range

Look in dry open country with loose soil — sandy or loamy flats, semi-desert, sparse shrub, and stony slopes. It spends most of the day underground, in a burrow, or under a stone; it usually appears at dusk or at night. The 2021 survey restricts it to south-eastern semi-arid landscape. This atlas maps Kakheti, Kvemo Kartli, and Tbilisi; that does not mean it is even across every corner of those regions. Named modern points are Tbilisi (CaBOL 1027415; also the checklist figure) and photographs from Lake Kumisi (June 2020) and Lisi Lake (2 July 2023). There is no confirmed range in western Georgia, Colchic forest, or the high mountains. A separate elevation band for Georgia is not published here.

Diet

No separate Georgian diet study is available. It kills by constriction — wrapping the body around prey, not with venom. Elsewhere in the range (Sicily) adults mainly eat small mammals; they also take lizard eggs and, less often, lizards. Juveniles forage more on lizard eggs. The Georgian menu has not been measured; the same prey groups — small lizards and rodents — are likely, but that is an inference, not a local count.

Behavior

The 2021 Georgian review lists it as nocturnal, together with the cat snake. It is rarely seen by day; encounters are more likely on a road, on freshly turned soil, or when a stone is lifted. It is live-bearing: eggs develop inside the female and young are born alive. Litter size and the exact season in Georgia are not published here. If you meet one, watch and leave it — do not pick it up. It is on the national Red List; removing it from the wild is restricted by law.

Conservation

IUCN lists it globally as Least Concern — the range is wide. Georgia’s 2014 Red List (Resolution No. 190) treats it as Vulnerable (VU), criterion B2a — a small fragmented range. The list cites Duméril & Bibron 1844 as authors; the accepted name is Eryx jaculus (Linnaeus, 1758). The 2026 checklist places it in Boidae. Local threats are conversion of dry habitat, roadkill, and killing after confusion with vipers. Do not collect it or kill it.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

Short answers to the most important questions about Javelin Sand Boa.