Snake Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ snakes from around the world — with venomous status, family, range, size, habitat, and how to tell look-alikes apart.
Shield-Nosed Snake
A small, thick-bodied elapid of southern Africa named for its enlarged, shield-like rostral scale used for burrowing.
Spotted Wolf Snake
A small, spotted South Asian wolf snake with enlarged front teeth used to grip prey, harmless to humans.
Rufous Beaked Snake
A fast-moving, ground-dwelling African snake named for its distinctive upturned, beak-like snout used for burrowing and probing after prey.
Elegant Sea Snake
A large, robust sea snake native to Australian waters, patterned with broad dark bands that fade with age, often found in reef and estuarine habitats.
Russell's Kukri Snake
A small, harmless kukri snake of the Indian subcontinent named after herpetologist Patrick Russell.
Pacific Gopher Snake
A large, heavy-bodied colubrid of the Pacific coast known for its loud hiss and defensive tail-vibrating display that often leads to mistaken identity as a rattlesnake.
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.
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.
Sauter's Coral Snake
A small, secretive coral snake endemic to Taiwan, named after the naturalist Hans Sauter, with mild neurotoxic venom and reclusive, nocturnal habits.
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, mildly venomous African colubrid with an upturned snout used for digging out rodent burrows.
Common Wolf Snake
A slender, nocturnal Asian colubrid often confused with venomous kraits due to similar banding, but harmless to humans.
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.
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 venomous krait species.
Eastern Fox Snake
A stout blotched constrictor of the Great Lakes wetlands and prairies, closely related to the western fox snake.
Banded Kukri Snake
A harmless, boldly banded egg-eating colubrid found across Southeast Asian lowlands.
Olive Sea Snake
A common and highly venomous sea snake of Indo-Pacific coral reefs, known for its curious behavior toward divers and olive-brown coloration.
Spotted Harlequin Snake
A small, brightly patterned southern African elapid with a slender body and boldly spotted coloration, mimicking more dangerous coral snake relatives.
Peters' Thread Snake
A tiny, worm-like burrowing snake from Africa with smooth, glossy scales and no functional venom delivery to humans.