Snake Identifier

Snake Encyclopedia

Search and identify 1,000+ snakes from around the world — with family, range, size, habitat, and how to tell similar species apart.

Persian Ratsnake

Persian Ratsnake

A slender, olive-brown ratsnake of the southern Caspian region, marked with a broken dark vertebral line and named for its historic Persian range.

Eastern Kingsnake

Eastern Kingsnake

A glossy black snake marked with narrow chain-like yellow or white bands, famed for preying on other snakes.

Eastern Rat Snake

A large, glossy black constrictor common across the eastern U.S., often seen climbing trees or barn rafters in search of rodents and birds.

Eastern Coral Snake

Eastern Coral Snake

A slender, brightly banded elapid of the southeastern United States, famous for its red-yellow-black ring pattern.

Eastern Small-Eyed Snake

Eastern Small-Eyed Snake

A small, glossy black nocturnal elapid widespread along the eastern Australian coast and ranges.

Eastern Indigo Snake

Eastern Indigo Snake

The longest native snake in North America, a glossy blue-black giant associated with gopher tortoise burrows.

Desert Black Snake

Desert Black Snake

A glossy black elapid of arid Middle Eastern deserts, closely related to cobras.

Black Whip Snake

Black Whip Snake

A large, fast, and powerfully built colubrid of the eastern Mediterranean and Middle East, often appearing nearly all black as an adult.

Lesser Black Krait

Lesser Black Krait

A glossy black krait of the eastern Indian subcontinent and Himalayan foothills, prone to entering rural dwellings at night.

Greater Black Krait

Greater Black Krait

A large, uniformly dark krait of the eastern Himalayan foothills and adjacent lowlands, lacking the strong banding seen in many of its relatives.

Red-Bellied Black Snake

Red-Bellied Black Snake

A glossy black elapid with a vivid red or pink belly, common near waterways in eastern Australia.

Mandarin Rat Snake

Mandarin Rat Snake

A strikingly patterned, secretive burrowing snake from East Asia known for its bold gray, black, and orange saddle markings.

Black-headed Centipede-eater

Black-headed Centipede-eater

A small, secretive African burrower named for its glossy black head and its diet of centipedes.

North American Racer

North American Racer

A fast-moving, slender colubrid found across much of North America, known for its speed and alert, active behavior.

Racer

Racer

A slender, fast-moving, sharp-eyed snake known for its speed.

Amur Rat Snake

Amur Rat Snake

A large, glossy black-and-yellow rat snake native to the temperate forests of the Russian Far East, China, and Korea, well adapted to cold winters.

Mud Snake

Mud Snake

A glossy black semi-aquatic snake with a vivid red-and-black checkered belly, often called the 'hoop snake' or 'stinging snake' in folklore.

Indigo Snake

Indigo Snake

The longest native snake in the United States, glossy blue-black and known for its calm demeanor.

Blotched Snake

Blotched Snake

A large, powerfully built ratsnake of the Caucasus and steppe regions, patterned with bold dark blotches along a pale body.

Milk Snake

Milk Snake

A boldly banded colubrid whose red, black, and pale banding resembles that of coral snakes across much of its range.

Dwyer's Snake

Dwyer's Snake

A small, dark-headed elapid found in rocky woodland habitats of eastern Australia.

Coral Snake

Coral Snake

A brightly ringed elapid with red, yellow, and black bands, known for the order in which its bands touch.

Central American Indigo Snake

Central American Indigo Snake

A large, powerful colubrid related to the eastern indigo snake, with a glossy dark tail and lighter forebody.

Western Rat Snake

Western Rat Snake

A large, dark constrictor of the central U.S. that darkens with age, closely related to the eastern and gray rat snakes.