Viperidae · Philippine record
Trimeresurus flavomaculatus(GRAY 1842)
Length: Adult female OMNH 46849 from Calayan: 130.8 cm snout–vent length plus 22 cm tail. Published in 2021 as a new maximum record, not a typical adult length.
p. 437
Venom: In laboratory experiments, weak, short-lived fibrin clots and fibrinogen consumption impair coagulation. This is not a clinical outcome prediction.
Results; coagulation experiments
Venom effects and medical significance are different from toxicity rankings. Do not handle a snake on the basis of this summary.
A Philippine pitviper with records across several island groups. Field surveys and recent venom research provide complementary views of its biology.
Literature updated 2026-10-07 · Editorial review pending
Explore the island records ↓Species portrait
Trimeresurus flavomaculatus
Image to followThe illustrated collection
Adult · study plate
Trimeresurus flavomaculatus
Image to followJuvenile · study plate
Trimeresurus flavomaculatus
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.
A closer look
Well documented in the Luzon faunal region, including the northern Sierra Madre. The Cagayan–Isabela survey includes a photographed specimen from Mount Cagua.
Literature documented · Trimeresurus flavomaculatus species account; Fig. 98
Northern Luzon field survey. The photograph is tied to KU 330049.
Venom can disrupt blood clotting. In 2025 laboratory experiments, it produced weak, short-lived fibrin clots in human plasma and isolated fibrinogen, a mechanism that can deplete fibrinogen rather than restore normal clotting.
Literature documented · Abstract; Results; Discussion
In-vitro venom experiments, not a clinical treatment trial.
Antivenom cross-neutralisation in a laboratory is not proof of clinical efficacy or a dosing recommendation.
Mendyk’s 2022 comparison describes published egg-laying and incubation records for this species. This conflicts with the live-bearing field in the consulted database; the source conflict is retained explicitly.
Literature documented · p. 360; comparison citing Klusmeyer & Fausten (1994)
Secondary comparison within a primary captive-breeding paper.
The original 1994 report was not independently read for this update. No wild breeding calendar is inferred.
The atlas records Trimeresurus flavomaculatus from these named Philippine areas: Luzon, Mindoro, Mindanao, Leyte, Panay, Negros, Bohol, Catanduanes, Jolo, Polillo, Camiguin. 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.
Trimeresurus flavomaculatus is retained in the atlas’s dated checklist under Viperidae. The authority is (GRAY 1842). 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.
Listed without a mapped outline: Camiguin.
Philippines (Camiguin, Jolo, Luzon, Mindanao, Polillo, Bataan) flavomaculatus: Bohol, Camiguin, Catanduanes, Dinigat, Jolo, Leyte, Luzon, Mindanao, Mindoro, Negros, Panay. halieus: Polillo; Type locality: Polillo, Philippines. Type locality: Philippines; restricted to Luzon by LEVITON (1964). Restriction is invalid according to DAVID & INEICH (1999).
Well documented in the Luzon faunal region, including the northern Sierra Madre. The Cagayan–Isabela survey includes a photographed specimen from Mount Cagua.
The amphibians and reptiles of Luzon Island, Philippines, VIII: the herpetofauna of Cagayan and Isabela Provinces, northern Sierra Madre Mountain Range ↗Trimeresurus flavomaculatus species account; Fig. 98
The atlas records Trimeresurus flavomaculatus from these named Philippine areas: Luzon, Mindoro, Mindanao, Leyte, Panay, Negros, Bohol, Catanduanes, Jolo, Polillo, Camiguin. 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.
The Reptile Database — species checklist, 17 June 2026 ↗
Bite First, Bleed Later: How Philippine Trimeresurus Pit Viper Venoms Hijack Blood Clotting ↗
Trimeresurus flavomaculatus (Philippine Pit Viper). Maximum Body Length. ↗
Reproductive Notes on McGregor’s Pitviper, Trimeresurus mcgregori Taylor 1919 ↗
Living with wildlife
Venomous · Haemotoxic · disrupts blood clotting
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.
Philippines (Camiguin, Jolo, Luzon, Mindanao, Polillo, Bataan) flavomaculatus: Bohol, Camiguin, Catanduanes, Dinigat, Jolo, Leyte, Luzon, Mindanao, Mindoro, Negros, Panay. halieus: Polillo; Type locality: Polillo, Philippines. Type locality: Philippines; restricted to Luzon by LEVITON (1964). Restriction is invalid according to DAVID & INEICH (1999).
Names through time
Megaera flavomaculatus GRAY 1842: 49 Magaera ornata GRAY 1842 Magaera variegata GRAY 1842 Parias flavomaculatus— GRAY 1849 Parias ornatus GRAY 1849 Parias variegatus GRAY 1849 Trimeresurus flavomaculatus — GÜNTHER 1879 Trimeresurus schadenbergi FISCHER 1885: 116 Lachesis flavomaculatus BOULENGER 1896 Trimeresurus halieus GRIFFIN 1910 Trimeresurus flavomaculatus halieus — LEVITON 1961 Trimeresurus flavomaculatus flavomaculatus — LEVITON 1961 Trimeresurus flavomaculatus flavomaculatus — WELCH 1994: 115 Trimeresurus flavomaculatus halieus — WELCH 1994: 115 Trimeresurus flavomaculatus — MCDIARMID, CAMPBELL & TOURÉ 1999: 332 Parias flavomaculatus flavomaculatus — MALHOTRA & THORPE 2004 Trimeresurus (Parias) flavomaculatus — DAVID et al. 2011 Parias flavomaculatus — GAULKE 2011: 336 Parias flavomaculatus — GAULKE 2013 Parias flavomaculatus — WALLACH et al. 2014: 537 Trimeresurus cf. flavomaculatus — SANGUILA et al. 2016 Parias flavomaculatus — GUO et al. 2018 Trimeresurus (Parias) flavomaculatus — MIRZA et al. 2023
Venomous! Subspecies: T. (Parias) flavomaculatus mcgregori (TAYLOR 1919) has been elevated to full species status. T. schultzei previously has been considered as a subspecies of T. flavomaculatus. The subspecies halieus is not recognized by GUMPRECHT et al. 2004. Type species: Megaera flavomaculatus is the type species of the genus Parias GRAY 1849. Diet: frogs, lizards, rodents, possibly fish 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
Brown, R. M.; Siler, C. D.; Oliveros, C. H.; Welton, L. J.; Rock, A.; Swab, J.; Van Weerd, M.; Van Beijnen, J.; Jose, E.; Rodriguez, D.; Jose, E.; Diesmos, A. C.
ZooKeys 266: 1–120
Castillo, D. A. E.; Seneci, L.; Chowdhury, A.; Rimando, M. G.; Fry, B. G.
Toxins 17(4): 185
Laboratory coagulation and neutralisation experiments. These do not establish clinical efficacy, treatment doses or individual bite outcomes.
Griffing, A. H.; Gamble, T.; Heinicke, M. P.; Brown, J. C.; Siler, C. D.
Herpetological Review 52(2): 437
1528 mm total length in adult female OMNH 46849 from Calayan; measured before fixation.
Mendyk, R. W.
DOI: 10.17161/randa.v29i1.18271
pp. 359–361, captive records; T. flavomaculatus comparison on p. 360 is a secondary citation of Klusmeyer & Fausten (1994).