Snake Encyclopedia
Search and identify 1,000+ snakes from around the world — with family, range, size, habitat, and how to tell similar species apart.
Western Diamondback Rattlesnake
One of the most widespread and commonly encountered rattlesnakes of the American Southwest, known for its bold tail rings.
Rainforest Hognosed Pit Viper
A small, well-camouflaged terrestrial pit viper of Central and South American rainforests, named for its upturned snout.
Rainbow Boa
A South American boa renowned for its iridescent sheen, which produces a shimmering rainbow effect in direct sunlight.
Brown-banded Water Snake
A common, semi-aquatic South American snake with brown banding, well adapted to life in rivers, ponds, and marshes.
Brazilian Coral Snake
A brightly ringed coral snake of southern South America's grasslands and forests, notable for its bold black-yellow-red banding and secretive lifestyle.
Mertens' Coral Snake
A South American coral snake honoring herpetologist Robert Mertens, found in the dry western forests of Ecuador and Peru.
False Water Cobra
A large, aquatic South American colubrid capable of flattening its neck into a cobra-like hood when threatened.
Guyana Blackback Coral Snake
A small coral snake of northern South America and southern Central America, patterned in tricolor rings with narrow pale bands.
Ringneck Snake
A small, widespread North American snake recognized by a bright yellow, orange, or cream neck ring against a dark, uniform body.
Jararaca
A widespread South American pit viper important pharmacologically, as compounds isolated from it led to the development of ACE inhibitor drugs.
Leopard Water Snake
A boldly spotted aquatic snake of southern South American wetlands, named for the leopard-like blotches covering its body.
Common Lancehead
The most widespread lancehead of the Amazon Basin, found across tropical South America.
Painted Coral Snake
A vividly ringed coral snake of the South American Atlantic Forest, notable for its black snout and tricolor banding pattern.
Green Racer
A slender, bright green, fast-moving snake of South American forests that hunts actively by day for frogs, lizards, and small mammals.
Mimic False Coral
A striking red, black, and cream banded colubrid of South America that mimics coral snakes.
Redbelly Water Snake
A heavy-bodied water snake with a plain dark back and a bright reddish-orange belly, common along ponds and swamps of the American South.
Pygmy Coral Snake
A small monadal-pattern coral snake of the dry Chaco and Cerrado regions of southern South America.
Indian Sand Boa
A robust, two-headed-looking burrowing boa from South Asia, prized historically for folklore and traditional beliefs about its blunt tail.
Banded Krait
A large, boldly banded krait of South and Southeast Asia, easily recognized by alternating black and yellow rings and a distinctive triangular cross-section.
Dumeril's Coral Snake
A tricolor coral snake of humid forests in northern South America, named for French naturalist Auguste Dumeril.
Crowned False Boa
A slender reddish colubrid from South America named for a dark crown-like marking on its head.
Royal Ground Snake
A small, brightly marked ground-dwelling colubrid found in open and forested habitats across northern South America.
Neuwied's False Boa
A slender, reddish-brown colubrid from northern South America that superficially resembles boas despite belonging to a different family.
Long-Nosed Worm Snake
A small, worm-like blind snake found in the leaf litter and soil of Trinidad and adjacent parts of northern South America.