Colubridae · Global account with Philippine editorial coverage
Lycodon capucinusBOIE, 1827
The species account records climbing or partly arboreal habits. It does not quantify the time spent in trees or establish a single habitat preference across its range. Its atlas account links 11 named island or island-group records to the source literature.
Literature updated 2026-10-07 · Editorial review pending
Explore the island records ↓Species portrait
Lycodon capucinus
Image to followThe illustrated collection
Adult · study plate
Lycodon capucinus
Image to followJuvenile · study plate
Lycodon capucinus
Image to followLife stages will be labelled from the contributor’s information. Images alone do not establish identification or a locality record.
Media provenance
Contributor images are forthcoming. Photographs and illustrations will retain their individual credits, permissions and evidence notes.
One species · Across borders
Explore the recorded countries and islands. Select a highlighted area to see its distribution evidence.
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Shading identifies recorded countries or named islands, not continuous habitat coverage. Uncoloured areas do not establish absence.
Natural Earth · 1:50m · public domain. Small islands may lack an outline.
Explore the distribution
Select a highlighted area to see its status, island records and sources. Each country and island links to the same shared species collection.
Use “Worldwide records” to include distant introduced and uncertain records in the map view.
Explicit Indonesian country or island locality supports inclusion.
A closer look
The species account records egg-laying reproduction. A verified Philippine clutch-size range, incubation interval and breeding calendar are not established here.
Literature documented · Reproduction field
Reproductive mode reported for this named species.
Mode alone does not establish litter or clutch size, seasonal timing, or captive husbandry requirements.
The species account records climbing or partly arboreal habits. It does not quantify the time spent in trees or establish a single habitat preference across its range.
Literature documented · Comment: Habitat
Species-level database summary; literature review, not expert validation.
The cited account does not establish population-wide variation or the conditions at every Philippine locality.
The atlas records Lycodon capucinus from these named Philippine areas: Luzon, Mindoro, Palawan, Mindanao, Samar, Leyte, Panay, Negros, Cebu, Masbate, Camiguin Sur. These are literature areas rather than a continuous range boundary.
Literature documented · Existing checklist occurrence statement and distribution review
The original evidence level is retained.
A country listing cannot establish an island or a precise locality.
Lycodon capucinus is retained in the atlas’s dated checklist under Colubridae. The authority is BOIE 1827. Earlier names and the original source notes are preserved below for comparison.
Literature documented · Checklist identity and nomenclatural trail
Checklist verified 2026-09-05; not a newly revised taxonomic backbone.
Historical names can cover different biological concepts; synonyms should not be used to transfer records automatically.
Across the archipelago
Documented islands: gold · island groups: dashed circles
Island-level records · not continuous habitat coverage. Dashed circles locate groups, not individual observations.
Philippine distribution
Select an island to read its distribution record and sources. Uncoloured islands are not evidence of absence.
Australia (Christmas Islands), New Guinea Myanmar (= Burma), Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Laos (Bolikhamxai, Vientiane), SE China (from Fujian and Guangdong westward to Yunnan), Hong Kong, Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Bali, Borneo, Sumbawa, Sumba, Komodo, Flores, Lomblen, Alor, Sawu, Roti, Timor, Wetar, Babar Islands, Kalao, Salajar, Buton, Sulawesi), Timor-Leste, West Malaysia, Johor: Pulau Besar, Maldives, Mascarenes (Mauritius, Reunion; fide Glaw, pers. comm.), Philippines (Bantayan, Cebu, Cuyo, Leyte, Luzon Masbate, Mindanao, Mindoro, Negros, Palawan, Panay, Samar, Camiguin Sur) Type locality: Java
The atlas records Lycodon capucinus from these named Philippine areas: Luzon, Mindoro, Palawan, Mindanao, Samar, Leyte, Panay, Negros, Cebu, Masbate, Camiguin Sur. These are literature areas rather than a continuous range boundary.
The Reptile Database — species checklist, 17 June 2026 ↗Existing checklist occurrence statement and distribution review
Synopsis of the Snakes of the Philippines: A Synthesis of Data from Biodiversity Repositories, Field Studies, and the Literature ↗Existing checklist occurrence statement and distribution review
References attached to this species account. Island-specific evidence is shown separately where available.
Living with wildlife
Venom classification not yet added · Effects not yet summarised in this atlas
Observe from a distance. Do not handle, corner or capture a snake to identify it. An incomplete venom account is not evidence that a species is safe to handle.
After a suspected snakebite, keep the person still and arrange urgent medical care. Avoid tight tourniquets, cutting, suction and unproven remedies. Do not wait to identify the snake before seeking help.
WHO guidance on snakebite first aidSpecies record
Range noteCountry/island text is not a range polygon or locality record.
Australia (Christmas Islands), New Guinea Myanmar (= Burma), Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, Singapore, Laos (Bolikhamxai, Vientiane), SE China (from Fujian and Guangdong westward to Yunnan), Hong Kong, Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Bali, Borneo, Sumbawa, Sumba, Komodo, Flores, Lomblen, Alor, Sawu, Roti, Timor, Wetar, Babar Islands, Kalao, Salajar, Buton, Sulawesi), Timor-Leste, West Malaysia, Johor: Pulau Besar, Maldives, Mascarenes (Mauritius, Reunion; fide Glaw, pers. comm.), Philippines (Bantayan, Cebu, Cuyo, Leyte, Luzon Masbate, Mindanao, Mindoro, Negros, Palawan, Panay, Samar, Camiguin Sur) Type locality: Java
Names through time
Coluber hebe DAUDIN 1803: 385 Lycodon capucinus H. BOIE in F. BOIE 1827: 551 Lycodon hebe — SCHLEGEL 1837 Lycodon aulicus (nec Coluber aulicus LINNAEUS 1758) — CANTOR 1847 Lycodon aulicum (partim) — DUMÉRIL et al. 1854: 369 Lycodon aulicus var. D — GÜNTHER 1858 Ophites septentrionalis (nec Ophites septentrionalis GÜNTHER 1875, now Dinodon septentrionalis) — MÜLLER 1887 Lycodon aulicus capucinus — BARBOUR 1912 Lycodon aulicus var. capucinus — HAAS 1950 Lycodon capucinus — TAYLOR & EIBEL 1958 Lycodon capucinus — TAYLOR 1965: 748 Ophites aulicus — ZHAO & ADLER 1993 Lycodon aulicus capucinus — BROWN et al. 1996 Lycodon aulicus capucinus — SUYANTO et al. 1996 Lycodon capucinus — MANTHEY & GROSSMANN 1997: 362 Lycodon capucinus (Lycodon aulicus) — COX et al. 1998: 62 Lycodon aulicus — LANZA 1999 Lycodon capucinus — COGGER 2000: 731 Lycodon aulicus capucinus — FERNER et al. 2001 Lycodon aulicus capucinus — LAZELL 2002 Lycodon capucinus — DE LANG & VOGEL 2005 Lycodon capucinus — WALLACH et al. 2014: 392 Lycodon capucinus — EIPPER & EIPPER 2024: 67
The closely related species, Lycodon aulicus (Linnaeus, 1758), of which L. capucinus is often considered a subspecies or a synonym, occurs in India, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. We follow David & Vogel (1996) in regarding these two forms as valid species which are sympatric throughout much of the shared part of their ranges. Not listed by GRANDISON 1977. Ecology: the introduction of L. capucinus has led to extinction of several lizards on Christmas Island (Oliver et al. 2018). Distribution: Has been reported from the Nicobar Islands but is not listed by DAS 1999 for the Nicobar Islands. Populations from the Andaman islands were redescribed as Lycodon hypsirhinoides. The species has been found in Micronesia and may have been introduced there (Buden & Taboroši 2016). See map in O’Shea et al. 2018. Habitat: partly arboreal (Harrington et al. 2018).
Uetz, P.; Freed, P.; Aguilar, R.; Reyes, F.; Kudera, J.; Hošek, J. (eds.)
Leviton, A. E.; Siler, C. D.; Weinell, J. L.; Brown, R. M.
Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences 64(14): 399–568
Uetz, P.; Hallermann, J. et al. (editors)
Public species fields consulted for bounded biological summaries. Primary sources quoted within the database were not independently examined unless explicitly stated. The catalogue name may differ from the current source title.