Boiga melanota
Silhouette: Alex Slavenko · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~90% in a week >90%
Boiga melanota, the western mangrove cat snake, is one of the biggest cat snake species in Asia. It is found in Thailand, West Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia (Sumatra). It is shiny bluish black in colour, marked with 40-50 yellow stripes. The mouth and throat area are yellow, whereas the ventral part of the body is yellowish black. The eyes are greyish in colour. It is categorised as a mildly venomous snake.
An adult mangrove snake can reach a length of 2.5 metres (8 ft 2 in). It is active at night (nocturnal) and hunts for birds, rats and birds eggs as its main diet. Its large head and mouth enables it to swallows its prey easily.
Recently reclassed from within the Dendrophila family, they share some physical traits such as similar colouring and being rear-fanged. Species Boiga melanota at The Reptile Database Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Khao Sok National Park | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 2 | Gunung Leuser National Park | 🇮🇩 Indonesia |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Singapore | 🇸🇬 Singapore |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | National Zoological Park | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 2 | Tierpark Berlin | 🇩🇪 Germany | |
| 3 | Chester Zoo | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 4 | National Zoological Garden of South Africa | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Night Safari | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 6 | National Zoo of Malaysia | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 7 | Singapore Zoo | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 8 | John Ball Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 9 | River Wonders | 🇸🇬 Singapore | |
| 10 | Farm in the City | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 11 | Siam Serpentarium | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 12 | Entopia | 🇲🇾 Malaysia | |
| 13 | Snake Farm of Queen Saovabha Memorial Institute | 🇹🇭 Thailand | |
| 14 | Blue Planet Aquarium | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | |
| 15 | Terrariet | 🇩🇰 Denmark | |
| 16 | Dolphins Bay Phuket | 🇹🇭 Thailand |
Likely
About 50% of wildlife watchers report a Western Mangrove Cat Snake sighting in Khao Sok National Park on a given day, based on 77 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 5th most-seen of the 44 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 90%, and over a week to over 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January
In that month about 70% of wildlife watchers report a Western Mangrove Cat Snake in Khao Sok National Park on a given day, against about 30% in August, the lowest month. That is one of Khao Sok National Park's driest months, with about 70 mm of rain against 280 mm in October.
Between 2 and 5 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Western Mangrove Cat 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.
Yes
Of the 2 parks where we can rate Western Mangrove Cat Snake sightings, Khao Sok National Park has the highest daily chance: about 50%. Next come Gunung Leuser National Park (Indonesia, about 20%).
Same genus: Boiga
The closest relatives of the Western Mangrove Cat Snake that you can see in Khao Sok National Park (genus Boiga, Australasian Cat Snakes) are Green Cat Snake (about 20%), White-spotted Cat Snake (about 10%) and Jasper Cat Snake (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Western Mangrove Cat Snake is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Khao Sok National Park (77 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.
