# Snake I.D



## Kyle.life (4 mo ago)

Help identify this snake looks like a common cateye snake but no books or images show this white band. Any suggestions would help 
Found in Costa Rica


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## Thrasops (Apr 15, 2008)

It is a juvenile cat-eyed snake, _Leptodeira sepentrionalis _or _L. ornata_. They lose the collar as they get older. The other similar _Leptodeira _species in Costa Rica that might confuse as an adult is _L. rhombifera_, which does not have a white collar as a juvenile.

(Under some authors the _L. septentionalis_ in Costa Rica have been classified as _L. ornata_; there is some disagreement whether this is a valid species or subspecies however - if you followed authors like Cesar Barrio Amoros it would be _L. ornata, _in which case_ L. septentrionalis _does not occur in Costa Rica).

It sounds like you are probably aware but just for anybody that reads this in the future - _Leptodeira _are mildly venomous and, although not considered dangerous, recently there have been a couple of more severe bite cases that have raised eyebrows - so it pays to not pick up any snake you are not 100% positive of ID on.


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