Description
The adult black mamba's back skin colour is olive, brownish, gray, or sometimes khaki. A young snake is lighter, but not light enough to be confused with the different species of green mamba. Its underbody is cream-coloured, sometimes blended with green or yellow. Dark spots or blotches may speckle the back half of the body, and some individuals have alternating dark and light scales near the posterior, giving the impression of lateral bars. The inside of the mouth is dark blue to inky black. The head is large but narrow and elongated, with the shape of a coffin. It is a proteroglyphous snake, meaning it has immovable, fixed fangs at the front of the maxilla. The eyes are dark brown to black, with a silvery-white to yellow edge on the pupils. These snakes are strong but slender in body: adult specimens are 2.5 to 3 m (8.2 to 9.8 ft) in length on average, but specimens measuring 3.1 to 3.75 m (10 to 12.3 ft) are relatively common, and some specimens have reached lengths of 4.3 to 4.5 m (14 to 15 ft). The longest scientifically measured, wild-caught black mamba recorded was 4.48 metres (14.7 ft) long, found in Zimbabwe. Adult black mambas' slender but powerful body can typically weigh from 1.6 to 3.1 kg (3.5 to 6.8 lb). There is no real sexual dimorphism, and both male and female snakes of this species have a similar appearance and tend to be similar in size. The species is the second-longest venomous snake in the world, exceeded in length only by the king cobra. Information regarding the lifespan of snakes in the wild is sparse; the longest recorded lifespan of a captive black mamba is 14 years, but actual maximum lifespans could be much greater. As they age, their colouration tends to get darker.
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—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
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