Chrysopelea paradisi
Silhouette: Alex Slavenko · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~40% in a week ~70%
Paradise tree snake, paradise flying snake or garden flying snake (Chrysopelea paradisi) is a species of colubrid snake found in Southeast Asia. It can, like all species of its genus Chrysopelea, glide by stretching the body into a flattened strip using its ribs. It is mostly found in moist forests and can cover a horizontal distance of 10 meters (33 feet) or more in a glide from the top of a tree. Slow motion photography shows an undulation of the snake's body in flight while the head remains relatively stable, suggesting controlled flight. They are mildly venomous with rear fangs and also can constrict their prey, which consists of mostly lizards and bats.
The species name paradisi comes from either the Latin "paradisus" or Greek "paradeisos", which means park. It is assumed that the holotype from 1826 was found in a park. Chrysopelea paradisi belongs to the genus Chrysopelea, which contains four other described species.
Chrysopelea is one of five genera belonging to the vine snake subfamily Ahaetuliinae, of which Chrysopelea is most closely related to Dendrelaphis, as shown in the cladogram below: It is found in Thailand, Indonesia... Wikipedia →
Recording0:31
Singapore · 2017
© jdieps · iNaturalist · CC BY 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Danum Valley Conservation Area | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 2 | Sepilok | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 3 | Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 4 | Gunung Leuser National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia | |
| 5 | Kaeng Krachan National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Singapore | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 2 | Kuala Lumpur | 🇲🇾 Malaysia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California Academy of Sciences | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Singapore Zoo | 🇸🇬 Singapore |
With luck
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Paradise Flying Snake sighting in Singapore on a given day, based on 296 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 15th most-seen of the 64 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 40%, and over a week to about 70%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May, October and December–January
In those months about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Paradise Flying Snake in Singapore on a given day, against about 10% in February–April, June–September and November, the lowest months.
Between 4 and 7 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Paradise Flying Snake sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
Yes
Of the 2 cities where we can rate Paradise Flying Snake sightings, Singapore has the highest daily chance: about 10%. Next come Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia, about 10%).
Same genus: Chrysopelea
The closest relatives of the Paradise Flying Snake that you can see in Singapore (genus Chrysopelea, Flying Snakes) are Banded Flying Snake (about 10%) and Golden Tree Snake (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Paradise Flying Snake is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Singapore (296 verified sightings), 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.
