Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Anyone know the species?
About 4' or SLIGHTLY less.. :]
the bottom is yellow on the first few inches, then it's lighter green the rest of the way.
This guy is a good climber..
Thanks for any help.

http://img264.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img2001dl8.jpg http://img266.imageshack.us/my.php?image=img1996ok6.jpg

Where did this come from? It looks like a Greater Greensnake to me. Opheodrys major or Cyclophiops major (same species). I could be way, WAY off but to me it looks like a smooth green snake but they should NEVER even approach 4-feet in length. The Greater Greensnake of china is pretty much the same thing but bigger and tops off around 4 feet in length. They are pretty uncommon both in the wild and in the pet trade which is why I'm kind of skeptical of my identification... Anyway, the species is also much more arboreal than the smooth green we have in the states so yeah, climbing would be expected if that's it.

also, if you have any more pics it may help

It really does have the body shape of the smooth green just way longer than should be possible. the greater greens of china are typically a little chunkier but who knows...

I agree. It looks like something exotic, though very similar to our Opheodrys. Knowing where the animal originated would go a long way toward making its identity easier for us.

~~Greg~~

Looks like the chinese green to me...
Came from A herp specialty shop labled as "green snake" they couldn't give the exact species..."
I can't find care on the chinese....anyone know any?
The store has a few more...these worth trying to breed?

If that's what it really is I wouldn't bother breeding it. Smooth greens are hard to breed as I understand and these guys should be challenging enough without trying to breed. The biggest problem people have is getting them to eat but I guess if you get it to eat then you're in the clear. My book on Hong Kong herps says that specimens have taken earthworms as well as caterpillars and insects. The smooth green I cared for a while back did really well on crickets but the would never accept anything larger than its head. If you give me a few days I can try to confirm the identification. Let's just say that I know a guy...

cool.
well, the store said it had't eaten in a month, so when it opened it mouth (thereat wise, but he doesn't bite) I just stuck a prekilled large cricket in there and he ate it.
No force nessecery.
I might go back and get another....seeing as they were only $59

jeez. If the other snakes haven't eaten in a month I bet you could haggle down their price a little. Think about it -- they are selling you snakes of unknown species and of unknown origin that are not eating whatever it is they are trying to feed it... that to me seems like grounds for making a deal. In essence, you might offer take the problem snakes "off their hands" at a reduced rate

Anyway, if you get more then best of luck. Check back in here in a few days if you aren't a regular and I'll let you know if my "dude" thinks it's O. major. He's done a lot of herp field work in southeastern china and if anybody is familiar with the species, it's probably him.

Here's a pic of a Smooth Green I found last summer

Ok, the person I spoke to said that from the greensnakes he's seen in china they generally have a more pointed head so it doesn't look quite right to him though there isn't a good profile shot of the head from above. Perhaps a topdown shot of the head would be helpful

With any luck chris will see this thread soon -- he's pretty good at looking at random snakes and just knowing what they are. I still think it could be the chinese greater green that we talked about earlier but still...

alternatively it could just be a really frickin' huge smooth green

Anyone know yet?

I might be able to help identify the snake, but all I could get to show up was the "Image Shack" main page!...GRRR!

~Doug
-----
"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Luckily I had a copy saved in my email...

Well, from the pics it is sort of a tough call,....but I think this could very well be an Asian/Chinese Green Snake! The genus name seems to be taxanomically problematic, with several names being applied. Eurypholis major(of which many are against because the name is preoccupied by a fish), Entechinus major, and Cyclophiops major,.....I believe additionally, even the name Opheodrys major is applied to this same snake as well.

Native to southeastern Asia, from Indo-China, to China and Japan. I's mainly found in damp montain bamboo forests, and is diurnal. It seems to be both terrestrial and arboreal feeding on earthworms and frogs. The snake grows to a length of up to about 40-48 inches.

Hope this helps some.

~Doug
-----
"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"

Ok, that's what I thought (not sure how many of the posts you read), it just seemed a little skinny but I've only seen one in the wild and none in captivity. There really isn't anything else that came to mind though I don't have too much experience with exotic snakes. For the record, my guide to the herps of Hong Kong has it listed as Opheodrys though it's a bit dated. My source, Skip (James) Lazell, who does a lot of work in the South China Sea area says that the currently accepted name is Cyclophiops but as you pointed out, there is always disagreement in these classifications.

I find it frustrating that a lot of the taxonomic work being done in eastern Asia and the eastern United States is not being coordinated. We share a lot of very similar species and Skip's work has largely been to explain this trend. Current biogeographic theory emphasizes plate tectonics and “vicariance,” or the separation of related plants and animals by moving continental plates but the continents broke up over 200 million years ago and many of the taxa showing up both in the eastern united states and eastern Asia evolved much more recently. Skip has coined this trend "Grayian distrobution" after the person who first described it over a hundred years ago and who's work in the field was ignored and forgotten by the scientific community. More recent dispersals have occurred since the breakup of the super continent Laurasia via the bearing land bridge but that seems to have been ignored in many of the genetic studies being done separating and reclassifying taxa on both continents.
The green snakes are just one of countless examples. One that I find most frustrating is with frogs. Our Wood Frog which was Rana and is now probably being moved to Lithobates (like most new world ranids) is almost indistinguishable from about five species of Asian frogs that were also Rana but are now considered by people there to be Hylarana. My theory is that the wood frog is more closely related to the frogs of the "genus" Hylarana than it is to something like a Bullfrog which is also in the new Lithobates group. GAH. In general it all just cheeses me off and I don't want to get involved but here we go... I now have a drawer full of Gunther's Frog toes... meh...

Anyway, thanks for your response

n/p
-----
"Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open mouth and remove any doubt!"