Rhadinaea decorata
Silhouette: Jose Carlos Arenas-Monroy · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~30% in a week ~50%
Rhadinaea decorata, the adorned graceful brown snake, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. It is found in Central and South America. The name Rhadinaea comes from the greek word for slender. The species name decorata was given to the snake for the white markings on its head means "decorated or adorned".
Snakes of this species are generally brown in color, with dark lines down the sides of their bodies and oftentimes another similar marking down the spine. These two dark streaks are often separated by another stripe that is tan in color. A white marking behind the eyes serve as the species' namesake. In species that are more southern in distribution, this marking is longer and continuous along the rest of the body.
Notable features of Rhadinaea decorata include a long tail, taking up a maximum of 47% of its body. They are also known to have a smaller number of ventral scales to other species, with scientists counting between 110 and 134 scales on collected specimens.
Rhadinaea decorata can get as long as 470 mm long, however lengths exceeding 400 mm are atypical. R. decorata typically has about 20 maxillary teeth, then followed by two larger... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Braulio Carrillo National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 2 | Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 3 | Bastimentos Island National Marine Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 4 | Arenal Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 5 | Tortuguero National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 6 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report an Adorned Graceful Brown Snake sighting in Arenal Volcano National Park on a given day, based on 19 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 36th most-seen of the 64 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 30%, and over a week to about 50%, if each day is a fresh chance.
November
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report an Adorned Graceful Brown Snake in Arenal Volcano National Park on a given day, against under 5% in March, June–July and September, the lowest months. That is one of Arenal Volcano National Park's wettest months, with about 500 mm of rain against 140 mm in April.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Adorned Graceful Brown Snake sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
4th of 6
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Adorned Graceful Brown Snake sightings, Arenal Volcano National Park ranks 4th at about 10%. The best odds are in Braulio Carrillo National Park (Costa Rica, about 20%), Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge (Costa Rica, about 20%) and Bastimentos Island National Marine Park (Panama, about 10%).
Same family: Colubridae
The closest relatives of the Adorned Graceful Brown Snake that you can see in Arenal Volcano National Park (family Colubridae, Colubrid Snakes) are Ornate Cat-eyed Snake (about 30%), Cloudy Snail-eating Snake (about 20%) and Blunthead Tree Snake (about 20%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Adorned Graceful Brown Snake is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Arenal Volcano National Park (19 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
