Rhamphiophis rostratus
Silhouette: SeismicShrimp · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10% in a week ~20%
Rhamphiophis rostratus, commonly known as the rufous beaked snake, is a species of snake in the family Psammophiidae. It is a large diurnal species native to eastern Africa, ranging from Somalia and Ethiopia in the north to South Africa in the south. It is easily identified by its pointed snout and a dark stripe running through the eye.
It is the type species of the genus Rhamphiophis, which is placed within the family Psammophiidae. Some authors consider it a subspecies of Rhamphiophis oxyrhynchus and refer to it by the trinomial name Rhamphiophis oxyrhynchus rostratus, however, molecular phylogenetic evidence supports its status as a species, with a 2008 analysis finding that R. rostratus represented a sister taxon to R. rubropunctatus and R. oxyrhynchus.
Rhamphiophis rostratus is widespread in eastern Africa, ranging from Ethiopia, Somalia, and South Sudan in the north through Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Mozambique, Malawi,... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Rufous Beaked Snake sighting in Kruger National Park on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 55th most-seen of the 62 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 20%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March–April, September and December
In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report a Rufous Beaked Snake in Kruger National Park on a given day, against under 5% in January–February, May–August and October–November, the lowest months.
Between 2 and 5 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Rufous Beaked 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.
Only Kruger National Park, in our data
Kruger National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Rufous Beaked Snake sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
Same family: Psammophiidae
The closest relatives of the Rufous Beaked Snake that you can see in Kruger National Park (family Psammophiidae, Sand Snakes) are Stripe-bellied Sand Snake (about 20%), Olive Whip Snake (about 10%) and Eastern Bark Snake (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Rufous Beaked Snake is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Kruger National Park (7 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.
