| 1 | Spotted lancehead |
Maximum length: 130cm.
This venomous snake lives in only two countries: a swathe of northwest Ecuador and a small portion of southern Colombia. The spotted lancehead (Bothrops punctatus) reaches a maximum of 130cm, and is uncommon within its range, being tucked away in old forests where it waits in ambush for prey. Its main region is the Chocoan lowlands, with the Canandé Reserve, Itapoa Rainforest Reserve, and Tesoro Escondido Reserve being particular hotspots. Its range also extends to Ecuador’s Pacific coast.
The spotted lancehead isn’t especially deadly, as its venom has an LD50 rating of 2.4mg, with an average injection of 34.4mg per bite. Its venom has less local symptoms than others, and specialises in coagulopathy, AKA blood clotting chaos with uncontrollable bleeding. This viper has a prehensile tail capable of grasping branches, and while not exclusively tree-dwelling, they’ve been spotted 18 metres high in the air.
Spotted lanceheads have a triangular head with a very thin neck. While a swathe of their forest heartland has been cut down, spotted lanceheads are widespread enough to not be under serious threat. The best way to find Bothrops punctatus is to walk along forest trails at night with a torch, but the odds are always small that you’ll actually meet one.
| 2 | Painted marsh snake |
Maximum length: 62.7cm.
This harmless snake lives in northern Ecuador, on the western slopes of the Andes, and in valleys within the Andes itself. It’s a high altitude snake, sticking to between 1600 and 3000 metres above sea level. Forests are their home, but painted marsh snakes are also happy in man-altered environments, with a mixture of pasture land, rural gardens and remnants of older vegetation.
Painted marsh snakes (Erythrolamprus vitti) lack venom and have a calm temperament, normally fleeing when approached. This is a day-faring snake which hides beneath leaf litter and soil when not active. They don’t even constrict their prey, instead forming a couple of loose coils to hold them in place while they swallow.
Painted marsh snakes reach a record of 62.7cm. One confirmed prey is the tropical lightbulb lizard, which is endemic to the Andes slopes of Ecuador. Amphibians are confirmed as well, namely the toad Osornophryne occidentals (another Ecuador exclusive). The painted marsh snake is most common in the northerly province of Carchi, where it crosses the border into extreme southern Colombia. Supposedly, you have a 8-10% of chance of finding this snake if you search near the town of Chilma Bajo for 4 hours.
| 3 | Osborne’s lancehead |
Maximum length: 144cm.
Another venomous menace which doesn’t actually bother the Ecuadorian people too much. Osborne’s lancehead (Bothrops osbornei) is the sister species to the spotted lancehead, and another inhabitant of old growth forest. Osborne’s lancehead lives significantly further south, and is confined solely to central Ecuador, unlike the spotted lancehead which crosses into southern Columbia.
Osborne’s lancehead reaches a maximum of 144cm, which is slightly longer than its cousin. The colours can be similar at first glance, but Osborne’s lancehead has trapezium shaped patterns, while the speckled lancehead has small dots arranged into squares. There’s an estimated 7.6% genetic divergence between the two.
As a youth, Osborne’s lancehead feeds on local frogs such as the Cachabi robber frog, before moving onto rodents when they mature, using ambush tactics as they wait on rocks. Juveniles have a brighter, yellower colour scheme which darkens into beige and brown in adulthood. Osborne’s lancehead is active at night and dusk, and is semi-arboreal, climbing to tree heights of 3.5 metres. With an LD50 score of 2.6 mg, its venom is slightly weaker than the spotted lancehead’s. Nevertheless, the bite can unleash necrosis and intense pain.
Osborne’s lancehead is unfortunately in danger, as its heartlands were old forests, some of which were untouched for thousands of years. On the western slopes of the Andes, over 50% of their habitats may have been slashed down.
| 4 | Cope’s tropical racer |
Maximum length: 153.1cm.
This species inhabits most of the western half of the country, from the spine-like Andes mountain range to the Pacific coast, ranging from altitudes of 0-3500 metres. Copeland’s tropical racer is a 100-150cm snake which is non-venomous, but can quickly turn snappy if pushed.
Rather than forests, Copeland’s tropical racers (Mastigodryas pulchriceps) are most commonly spotted crossing trails and roads, in areas with plenty of vegetation on either side. They’re particularly abundant in the Canandé and Otongachi Reserves, and their appearance transforms with age. Youths have a viper-esque pattern, which is probably designed to mimic them and scare off predators with a terrifying “venom”. But as adults, they become far more elegant, with pale yellow scales interspersed with metamorphosizing sheens of orange.
This snake is hardy and copes well with human activity. It’s one of the few snakes to inhabit the Ecuadorian capital of Quito, and the adjacent valleys. Copeland’s tropical racers are safe from extinction, as they’re plentiful in at least a dozen protected areas of Ecuador. Frogs are on their menu, but most of their prey recorded so far is reptiles, including the ocellated Andean lizard, Chota whorltail iguana and Quito whorltail iguana.
| 5 | Bailey’s blind snake |
Maximum length: 29.3cm.
Perhaps one of the rarest snakes in the world. Bailey’s blind snake (Trilepida anthracina) lives solely in Ecuador, and is rarely seen by humans, as it spends most of its life in underground tunnels. Almost all records of this species come from the Pastaza river valley of central Ecuador, on the eastern side of the Andes. Searching for this snake would be a fool’s errand – most individuals so far have been found purely by accident.
Bailey’s blind snake is tiny. Its record length is just 29.3cm, and hence, it probably preys on insects and termite larvae, although nobody is certain, as research is severe lacking. This species looks more like a scaleless worm than a snake, and its eyes are like the dots of a black pen.
Bailey’s blind snake mostly inhabits cloud forests and evergreen forests, usually old growth, but they can withstand moderate levels of human disturbance. While mostly an underground dweller, they sometimes crawl along the forest floor, or even roads. Being so tiny, there’s always a chance that Trilepida anthracina is more common than people believe, and managing to hide under everyone’s nose.
| 6 | Lojan’s lancehead |
Maximum length: 61.1cm.
This third venomous Ecuadorian snake is an entirely different proposition to the first two Bothrops members. It’s a more distant relative and lives much further south, inhabiting the Andes mountains near the Peruvian border.
Lojan’s pitviper (Bothrops lojani) sticks to altitudes of 2000-2750 metres, and is common in highland grasslands, shrublands, tropical montane forests, gardens and pasture land. They only really avoid areas with zero vegetation, such as towns or modern, mechanized farmland. This is a day-faring viper, a diurnal snake which is rarely seen on the move later than 7:00pm (although as late as 10:00pm has been sighted).
Lojan’s lancehead is an unpredictable species. Some will wiggle their tail in leaves and make a warning noise when threatened, but others will mindlessly attack. Its venom is a total mystery, as there are no scientific studies or detailed reports. The name references the southern Ecuadorian city of Loja, where this species was originally found.
Lojan’s lancehead is an ambush predator which feeds on rodents and lizards. They sometimes lurk on agave plants, Puya plants, or in crevices on the ground. At a maximum of 61.1cm, Bothrops lojanus is significantly shorter than the two Bothrops members of northern Ecuador.
| 7 | Ribboned brittle snake |
Maximum length: 62.2cm.
One of the harder snakes to find in Ecuador. The ribboned brittle snake (Urotheca lateristriga) is a slightly venomous species, which isn’t able to inject 50mg with one sudden bite, but chews in a weak venom which can eventually unleash moderate pain and swelling.
Ribboned brittle snakes inhabit almost the entire northwest of Ecuador, including the Andes foothills and Pacific coast, but are very shy and like to lurk below leaf litter in forests. The heart of its empire is a town (and region) called Mindo. From a distance, this species looks like a basic brown snake, with a thin white line on each flank. But up close, the brown becomes more complex, with vivid shades of red and black manifesting before your very eyes.
Their belly is a red-orange colour, while their tail is unusually long, making up 22-33% of their body. The Latin name, Urotheca lateristriga, refers to this long tail (oura is Greek for tail).
Ribboned brittle snakes are also capable of snapping their tail off when bird predators seize them in their talons, which happens often given their small size. The average length is 50cm, and the all-time record was 62.2cm, recorded in 2017. Combined with a weak venom, it’s not surprising that this snake is so keen on staying hidden.
| 8 | Andean snail eater |
Maximum length: 84.3cm.
A harmless serpent with recognisable black and white patterns. Dipsas andiana has an extremely blunt, prominent head, almost like the handle of a whip. Several other Dipsas (snail eater) members live in Ecuador, but the Andean snail eater (Dipsas andiana) is the only one with a distinctive U-shaped marking on the back of its head.
This is a forest dweller, and often pops up in banana and coffee plantations. Andean snail eaters have even been found in banana boxes shipped overseas by cargo vessels. If you ever find one crawling out of your shopping trolley in London or Berlin, then it almost certainly originated from Ecuador, as aside from a tiny portion of northern Peru, that’s the sole country they inhabit (unlike the far more widespread Dipsas indica).
Within their habitats, Andean snail eaters stick closely to streams. They crawl along the ground, but also climb to branch perches 10-300cm high. Their goal is to find snails, and they’re not fussy about which ones they swallow, even feeding on introduced giant African snails.
Dipsas andiana is quite easy to find during December-May (rainy season). They mainly come out at night, and their hotspots include the Mindo and Buenaventura biological reserve, and Mashpi rainforest reserve.
| 9 | Hooded centipede snake |
Maximum length: 42.8cm.
The hooded centipede snake is a 30cm species with no venom. It belongs to the widespread Tantilla genus, which also includes Tantilla oolitica from Florida. This humble Ecuadorian snake mostly dodges the Andes and sticks to the lowlands of western Ecuador, reaching as far west as the Pacific coast. They also cross the southern border into Peru, though Ecuador is clearly their base.
The hooded centipede snake (Tantilla capistrata) is rare, usually appearing no more than every few months at any given location. However, their habitats are flexible – their elusiveness is down to their burrowing, semi-fossorial habits instead. Hooded centipede snakes can make their home in dry forests, shrubland, cattle fields, and rural gardens. They’re sometimes found beneath logs and timber, and their first instinct when startled is to dig furiously.
Another defensive strategy is poking people with their sharp tail. Hooded centipede snakes are red on almost their entire body, except the head, where a black hood and stripes begin. Its head is barely distinguishable from its neck, similarly to most burrowers.
| 10 | Hudson’s coffee snake |
Maximum length: 49.4cm.
This mostly brown snake is simple to distinguish from others in the Ecuadorian Amazon, mainly due to its snowy white neck scarf, which contrasts sharply against a chocolatey body. Hudson’s coffee snake vary in frequency, as they’re rare in many places, but surprisingly abundant in others.
Hudson’s coffee snake (Ninia hudsoni) peaks at just 49.4cm. Unlike the rest of our list, this species mostly inhabits eastern Ecuador, on the opposite side of the Andes mountain range. The only thing Ninia hudsoni needs to thrive is vegetation. Hence, they appear in evergreen forests, but also plantations, gardens and pastures.
Hudson’s coffee snake is very timid, even when picked up. Their usual defensive move is to duck their head into a shield of coils. They’re believed to feed on slugs and earthworms, like their fellow coffee snakes, and are confirmed prey themselves for larger snakes such as Clelia clelia and Hemprich’s coral snake.
Hudson’s coffee snake has keeled (rough) scales to touch, and its belly is pristine white, contrasting sharply against the black-brown. This 40cm snake is found crawling along forest floors rather than high in trees.
| 11 | Amazonian toad-headed pitviper |
Maximum length: 86cm.
A relatively non-aggressive pitviper, but still a pitviper, with all its lethal consequences. The Amazon toad-headed pitviper (Bothrocophias hyoprora) dwells in eastern Ecuador, where it has an abundance of sightings. It’s a common species, stretching to central Brazil, and mainly dwells on the ground, occasionally climbing trees or large rainforest boulder slabs.
Most South American pitvipers have great camouflage, but this species has made camouflage its entire survival strategy. Its scales are murky and leafy and glisten with decomposing forest matter, allowing them to blend into the ancient undergrowth with ease.
They also continue this strategy when confronted. If discovered in their overgrown, rainy forest corners, then Bothrocophias hyoprora doesn’t react with aggression. It moves slowly and sluggishly, preferring to escape even deeper into the forest if it feels threatened.
That said, Bothrocophias hyoprora is still a pitviper, and still a mortal threat if their danger sensors exceed critical mass. Their venom lacks neurotoxins and myotoxins, and is richer in anticoagulants which trigger spontaneous bleeding. Their diet is mixed, containing a variety of amphibians, reptiles and rodents.
This species overlaps with a few vipers in eastern Ecuador. It’s distinguishable from the common lancehead by its upturned snout, while it’s distinguishable from the small-eyed toad-headed pitviper due to its patterns. Rather than repeated X shaped-markings, the Amazon toad-headed pitviper has repeated darker bands, in a slight trapezium shape.
| 12 | Copper parrot snake |
Maximum length: 132.6cm.
The parrot snake genus (Leptophis) has 20 members across the Americas, but this species is one of the least sighted. This thin-bodied snake is found in Peru, Colombia, western Brazil, and Ecuador, where they have the most sightings of anywhere, but still relatively few.
The copper parrot snake (Leptophis cupreus) is a mildly venomous species, whose exact venom potency is unresearched due to its scarcity. Compared to other parrot snakes, this is one of the least green, with hints of copper-brown covering their entire bodies. So far, they’ve been observed most commonly on the ground, on leafy forest floors with assorted rocks and thick vegetation. They’ve been found in ancient forests as well as modified human zones with some tree clumps left standing.
Copper parrot snakes are believed to prey mainly on amphibians, as a rainfrog was found in the stomach of an old preserved specimen. Observations suggest that they seek out colourful rosettes which collect rainwater, in order to ambush the frogs these attract. Copper parrot snakes have keeled scales to touch, and despite being rare, have even appeared in gardens occasionally.
| 13 | Ecuadorian eyelash viper |
Maximum length: 85.7cm.
February 2024 was probably the worst month of all time for ophiophobes. It was the month in which 5 new pitvipers were unleashed upon Colombia and Ecuador, all species which had never been discovered before. Rather than manifesting in the jungle from thin air, these were originally members of the widespread eyelash viper species, which was divided into many smaller species following detailed genetic analysis.
In Ecuador, one of the new species was the Ecuadorian eyelash viper (Bothriechis nitidus), which is endemic to the country’s west, occurring nowhere else. This species has a narrow range, yet is abundant within that range, with high concentrations of sightings in humid lowland forests.
Like other eyelash vipers, this species is bright green, with messy black markings. Almost all photos taken so far have been in trees, whether on thinner branches or thicker, moss-covered trunks. Bothriechis nitidus has savagely vertical pupils, and some individuals have a bright red underside.
Being so new, the precise venom composition of Botrheichis nitidus, and whether it differs from the main eyelash viper, is still a mystery. What we do know is that this pitviper attacks from the branches it clings to, meaning that most bites will strike the chest and arms (be careful).
| 14 | Clark’s forest racer |
Maximum length: 155cm.
A large-eyed snake, which identifies its prey using vision, and charges at them using all possible speed. Clark’s forest racer (Dendrophidion clarkii) is a non-venomous species, which relies on agility and energetic exploration for its survival. This species is found in four confirmed countries: Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia and Ecuador.
Clark’s forest racer generally inhabits the ground, but is nimble in trees. It inhabits a mixture of pristine forests and degraded forests, and preys on frogs, including northern rainfrogs (Craugastor genus). This snake has also been found in cocoa and banana plantations.
Clark’s forest racers have the gift of speed, unlike an anaconda. Their solution when threatened is to flee at high speeds into the thick Ecuadorian undergrowth. This is also a semi-communal snake, as in 2017, scientists were trudging along a hiking trail in a cloud forest near Mindo, Ecuador. Inside an old mammal burrow, they found hatchlings of Clark’s forest racer measuring around 25cm.
They also found intact snake eggs, and two weeks later, these hatched, and out crawled a group of sleepy ground snakes (Atractus dunni). The scientists estimated that the chamber contained 2 eggs clutches of Clark’s forest racers, and 1 clutch of sleepy ground snakes. Clark’s forest racer is only found in western Ecuador, never to the east of the Andes.