Snake Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ snakes from around the world — with family, range, size, habitat, and how to tell similar species apart.
Pacific Gopher Snake
A large, heavy-bodied colubrid of the Pacific coast known for its loud hiss and tail-vibrating display that often leads to mistaken identity as a rattlesnake.
Cope's Garter Snake
A highland garter snake from the Valley of Mexico, named after the prolific 19th-century naturalist Edward Drinker Cope.
Forest Flame Snake
A slender tricolor Neotropical snake whose banded red-and-black pattern resembles that of coral snakes.
American Pipe Snake
A striking red-and-black banded burrowing snake from the Amazon Basin, often mistaken for a coral snake.
Indian Rat Snake
One of the largest and most commonly encountered snakes in South Asia, a fast-moving diurnal hunter that plays a major role in controlling rodent populations.
Carib Coral Snake
A coral snake of Trinidad and northern Venezuela, marked with bold tricolor rings along its slender body.
Japanese Coral Snake
A small, secretive coral snake endemic to the subtropical Ryukyu Islands of Japan, patterned with reddish-brown bands.
Forsten's Cat Snake
A large, powerfully built cat snake found in India and Sri Lanka, known for its bold blotched pattern and strong climbing ability.
Gunther's Garter Snake
A small, secretive East African garter snake, part of the elapid genus Elapsoidea, with burrowing habits.
Sauter's Coral Snake
A small, secretive coral snake endemic to Taiwan, named after the naturalist Hans Sauter, with reclusive, nocturnal habits.
Bogert's Garter Snake
A montane garter snake from the highlands of Oaxaca, named after herpetologist Charles Bogert.
Horseshoe Whip Snake
A slender, patterned colubrid named for the horseshoe-shaped marking on the back of its head, found across southern Iberia and North Africa.
Chinese Sea Snake
One of the larger and more widely distributed true sea snakes, recognizable by its bold black and yellow-green banding, ranging across coastal Asian waters.
Lambert's Sea Snake
A moderately sized sea snake native to the Gulf of Thailand, closely related to the large-headed sea snake and named after a naturalist collector.
Dwarf Sand Snake
One of the smallest members of the Psammophis genus, this diminutive sand snake inhabits savanna and grassland regions of southern and central Africa.
African Beaked Snake
A fast-moving African colubrid with an upturned snout used for digging out rodent burrows.
Common Wolf Snake
A slender, nocturnal Asian colubrid with banding similar to that of kraits.
Conant's Garter Snake
A garter snake from the highlands of southern Mexico named in honor of herpetologist Roger Conant.
Radiated Rat Snake
A slender, fast-moving colubrid recognized by the radiating dark stripes across its head, common across South and Southeast Asian lowlands.
Annulated Sea Snake
A widespread, boldly banded sea snake with alternating dark and pale rings, common in shallow coastal and estuarine waters across Asia.
Desert Coral Snake
A Mexican Pacific coast coral snake adapted to dry tropical habitats, with bold red, black, and white/yellow tricolor rings.
Western Shovelnose Snake
A small, boldly banded desert colubrid with a countersunk lower jaw and flattened snout adapted for swimming through loose desert sand.
Banded Wolf Snake
A nocturnal Southeast Asian colubrid with bold banding that resembles krait species.
Eastern Fox Snake
A stout blotched constrictor of the Great Lakes wetlands and prairies, closely related to the western fox snake.