Hierophis viridiflavus
Silhouette: Ignazio Avella · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~50% in a week ~80%
The green whip snake or western whip snake (Hierophis viridiflavus) is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. This species is present in Andorra, Croatia, France, Greece, Italy, Malta, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, and possibly Luxembourg.
The melanic form occurs in the eastern part of the range and the striped in the western part, with a contact zone throughout most of northern Italy. Its natural habitats are temperate forests, temperate shrubland, Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, arable land, pastureland, plantations, rural gardens, and urban areas. The green whip snake is a slender species with a small but well-defined head, prominent eyes with circular pupils, and smooth scales. The background colour is greenish-yellow but this is mostly obscured by heavy, somewhat irregular bands of dark green or black, particularly in the front half of the snake. The underparts are grey or yellowish and the tail has narrow longitudinal stripes. The young are a greyish colour and develop their full adult... Wikipedia →
Recording1:48
Italy · 2018
© brunoparisotto · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aigüestortes National Park | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 2 | Mercantour National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 3 | Pyrénées National Park | 🇫🇷 France | |
| 4 | Cévennes National Park | 🇫🇷 France |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zagreb Zoo | 🇭🇷 Croatia | |
| 2 | zoo delle Maitine | 🇮🇹 Italy | |
| 3 | Falconeria Locarno | 🇨🇭 Switzerland |
Possible
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Green Whip Snake sighting in Pyrénées National Park on a given day, based on 73 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 6th most-seen of the 22 reptiles we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 50%, and over a week to about 80%, if each day is a fresh chance.
May
In that month about 30% of wildlife watchers report a Green Whip Snake in Pyrénées National Park on a given day, against under 5% in November to March, the lowest months.
Between 5 and 8 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Green Whip Snake sightings with a recorded time, and about 7 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
3rd of 4
Of the 4 parks where we can rate Green Whip Snake sightings, Pyrénées National Park ranks 3rd at about 20%. The best odds are in Aigüestortes National Park (Spain, about 30%) and Mercantour National Park (France, about 30%).
Same family: Colubridae
The closest relatives of the Green Whip Snake that you can see in Pyrénées National Park (family Colubridae, Colubrid Snakes) are Viperine Snake (about 20%), Smooth Snake (about 20%) and barred grass snake (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Green Whip Snake is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Pyrénées National Park (73 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.
