Tropidonophis mairii
Silhouette: Alex Slavenko · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~60% in a week ~90%
Tropidonophis mairii, also known commonly as Mair's keelback, the common keelback, and the freshwater snake, is a species of colubrid snake in the subfamily Natricinae. The species is native to Australasia. The specific name, mairii, is in honor of "Dr. Mair", an army surgeon with the 39th Regiment of Foot, who collected the holotype.
Tropidonophis mairii is found in Australia, Indonesia, New Guinea, and Papua New Guinea. The preferred natural habitats of Tropidonophis mairii are forest, grassland, and freshwater wetlands, at altitudes from sea level to 50 m (160 ft).
Dorsally, Tropidonophis mairii is olive, brown, or blackish, with small black spots, or with black crossbars anteriorly. Ventrally, it is lighter. The subcaudals and often also the ventrals are edged with black. The dorsal scales are strongly keeled, and arranged in 15 rows at midbody.
It resembles the Australian venomous rough-scaled snake (Tropidechis carinatus). T. mairii rarely grows over 1 m (39 in) in total length (tail included). Tropidonophis mairii is diurnal and nocturnal, arboreal, semi-aquatic, and terrestrial. Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kakadu National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Litchfield National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Nitmiluk National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brisbane | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cairns Aquarium | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Mair's Keelback sighting in Nitmiluk National Park on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 13th most-seen of the 13 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 60%, and over a week to about 90%, if each day is a fresh chance.
March
In that month about 50% of wildlife watchers report a Mair's Keelback in Nitmiluk National Park on a given day, against under 5% in April, June and October, the lowest months.
Between 6 and 9 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Mair's Keelback sightings with a recorded time, and about 6 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.
3rd of 4
Of the 4 parks where we can rate Mair's Keelback sightings, Nitmiluk National Park ranks 3rd at about 20%. The best odds are in Kakadu National Park (Australia, about 30%) and Litchfield National Park (Australia, about 30%).
Same family: Colubridae
The closest relatives of the Mair's Keelback that you can see in Nitmiluk National Park (family Colubridae, Colubrid Snakes) are Black Treesnake (about 30%) and Brown Tree Snake (about 30%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Mair's Keelback is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Nitmiluk National Park (5 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.
