‘Metallic’ creature found lurking in Chinese city. It’s a shimmering new species

A new “cryptic” species of snake with “metallic” scales was discovered by researchers in China.

The reptile — which appears to have an iridescent blue sheen — was found during a survey in Hunan, a mountainous province in southeast China, according to a study published Sept. 28 in the peer-reviewed journal ZooKeys.

Researchers located four specimens slinking in Lianyuan City, while a fifth was spotted on the city’s outskirts.

The snakes were collected and humanely euthanized before tissue samples were taken for further analysis, researchers, who are affiliated with various universities in China, said.

DNA was then extracted from the tissue samples, and the snakes’ genetic material was analyzed in an attempt to place the creatures on a phylogenetic tree.

Following the analysis, it was confirmed that the reptiles belonged to a previously unidentified species in the genus Achalinus, a family of burrowing, non-venomous snakes found in East Asia.

The Achanlinus snakes are odd-scaled, meaning, unlike many other reptiles, their scales do not overlap and they have exposed skin in between, according to Reptiles Magazine.

They dwell under leaves and dead wood on forest floors and likely prey on frogs, slugs and earthworms, according to iNaturalist, a citizen scientist platform.

“Currently, 26 species of this genus have been documented and more than half of them (17 species) were described in the past five years,” researchers said.

The newfound species, named sheni after a renowned Chinese herpetologist, is distinguished by its 23 rows of scales, short tail and other subtle physical features.

Interestingly, its scales have a “metallic luster” and are “tinged weakly iridescent,” meaning they appear to shimmer.

Currently, the species is only known to dwell in Hunan, which is filled with evergreen forests.

“This new species’ population status requires further investigation,” researchers said, adding there is not enough data to determine its conservation status.