Dendrelaphis pictus
—
Gmelin’s Bronzeback
Also known as:
Common Bronzeback, Painted Bronzeback, Painted Bronzeback Tree Snake
I spotted this long thin elegant snake gliding slowly in the branches of this tree. By the time I could point my camera at it, it had begun its escape. I managed this one shot that shows the head and a little of the neck from almost directly underneath, then it simply vanished, quickly and completely. Even in this picture I have no idea where it's hiding the majority of its body. We saw another one on Komodo a few days later, and that one similarly vanished into the tree before I could get even a single shot.
Printed references:
- Auffenberg, W. 1980. The Herpetofauna of Komodo, with Notes on Adjacent Areas
Bulletin of the Florida State Museum Biological Sciences Volume 25 Number 2 - Cox, M. J., van Dijk, P. P., Nabhitabhata, J., Thirakhupt, K. 1998. A Photographic Guide to Snakes and Other Reptiles of Peninsular Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand
- Das, I. 2010. A Field Guide to the Reptiles of South-east Asia
- Manthey, U., Grossmann, W. 1997. Amphibien & Reptilien Südostasiens