Reptiles · Squamata · Colubridae
Boomslang
Dispholidus typus
The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary
The boomslang, also known as the Cape tree snake, is a species of alethinophidian snake of the family Colubridae. Its name means "tree snake" in Afrikaans and Dutch. Its size is relatively large, 1 to 1.50 m in length. It is widely distributed across sub-Saharan Africa, and has different colour phases depending on the area. Males are more colourful than females, and the feature they share is that they have the largest eye of any snake, which is also a bright green that is very striking in young individuals.
Weight
3.8 kg on average
Size
1 m – 2 m
Lifespan
12 years
Diet
Carnivore
Feeds mainly on other animals.
Activity
Diurnal
Active mainly during the day.
Social structure
Solitary
Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.
Sighting difficulty
Easy
Fun facts
- GeneralA tree snake with a very potent haemotoxic venom and enormous eyes for hunting chameleons.
- In 1957 the herpetologist Karl Schmidt was bitten by a juvenile boomslang and, convinced that the dose was harmless, meticulously noted his symptoms hour by hour for twenty-four hours until he died: his diary completely changed the medical view of this species.
- Its venom acts slowly and without initial pain, which has led victims not to seek medical help in time: it can take more than a day to show its full effects.
- It has the largest eyes in proportion to the head of almost any African colubrid, with excellent binocular vision for hunting chameleons and birds in the canopy.
Life cycle & biology
- Skeleton type
- Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (reptile)
- Habitat & environment
- Wooded savannah, gallery forest, scrub and plantations of sub-Saharan Africa
- Sexual maturity
- 2 years
- Gestation / incubation
- 90 days of incubation
- Litter / clutch size
- 12 eggs
Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dispholidus_typus
Where to find it
See its range on the interactive mapWhere to watch it
Parques y spots de buceo donde se ha documentado esta especie — se muestran 10 de 75 documentados.
Related species
Other species in the catalogue with the most in common with Boomslang — same habitat, park, country, tags or family.
Rhombic Egg Eater
Dasypeltis scabra
Helmeted Turtle
Pelomedusa subrufa
Ball Python
Python regius
Puff Adder
Bitis arietans
Black-necked Spitting Cobra
Naja nigricollis
Black Mamba
Dendroaspis polylepis
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