1
Boa Constrictor
Boa constrictor
A heavy-bodied neotropical boa famed for its strong constriction and adaptability across forests, savannas, and human-modified habitats.
Looking for 5-syllable snakes? Here are 20 snakes that fit — each linked to a full profile.
Syllables are counted across the whole name (multi-word names sum). "Apple" is 2 syllables; "Macaroni and Cheese" is 6.
Table of contents
List of 5-syllable Snakes
2
Common Garter Snake
Thamnophis sirtalis
A small, harmless North American snake with three pale stripes down a dark back, one of the most familiar wild snakes on the continent.
3
Dog-faced Water Snake
Cerberus rynchops
A stocky, mildly venomous snake of Asian mangrove swamps with a blunt dog-like snout suited to hunting in muddy water.
4
Eastern Coral Snake
Micrurus fulvius
A small, slender, red-yellow-and-black ringed elapid of the American Southeast with extremely potent neurotoxic venom.
5
Egyptian Cobra
Naja haje
A large, broad-hooded African elapid steeped in ancient Egyptian symbolism and reputed to be the snake of Cleopatra's death.
6
European Adder
Vipera berus
A small, cool-tolerant Eurasian viper whose dark zig-zag stripe is one of the most recognisable patterns in European wildlife.
7
Eyelash Viper
Bothriechis schlegelii
A small, colourful arboreal pit viper of Central American cloud forests, named for the spiky raised scales above its eyes.
8
False Coral Snake
Anilius scytale
A South American colubrid that mimics the bold red-and-black ringed pattern of true coral snakes but is harmless to humans.
9
Golden Lancehead
Bothrops insularis
A critically endangered pit viper found only on Snake Island off the coast of Brazil, with venom potent enough to subdue migratory birds in flight.
10
Indian Cobra
Naja naja
A widespread South Asian elapid bearing the iconic spectacle marking on its hood, sacred in Hindu mythology and one of the Big Four medically important snakes of India.
11
Indian Python
Python molurus
A large South Asian python, paler and a touch shorter than its Burmese relative, equally at home in jungles and rocky hillsides.
12
Jamaican Boa
Chilabothrus subflavus
A handsome yellow-and-black Caribbean constrictor endemic to Jamaica, critically reduced by introduced mongooses and habitat loss.
13
Japanese Rat Snake
Elaphe climacophora
A slim, climbing colubrid endemic to Japan, widely encountered around traditional wooden houses where it hunts rats and roosting birds.
14
Jararacussu
Bothrops jararacussu
A massive South American pit viper of Atlantic rainforest, larger and even more venomous than its slimmer cousin the jararaca.
15
Mojave Rattlesnake
Crotalus scutulatus
A green-tinged desert rattlesnake of the American Southwest whose venom mixes hemorrhagic and powerful neurotoxic components.
16
Northern Water Snake
Nerodia sipedon
A heavy, banded non-venomous water snake of eastern North America, frequently misidentified as a cottonmouth and killed by mistake.
17
Oriental Rat Snake
Ptyas mucosa
A long, slim, alert Asian colubrid often kept by snake charmers, beneficial around villages for controlling rats and rodents.
18
Timber Rattlesnake
Crotalus horridus
A large, heavy-bodied rattlesnake of eastern North American hardwood forests, calm by nature and culturally important in colonial American history.
19
Western Hognose Snake
Heterodon nasicus
A small, upturned-snouted prairie snake popular as a pet, famous for puffing up dramatically and then playing dead.
20
Yamakagashi
Rhabdophis tigrinus
A handsome rear-fanged Japanese natricine snake with unusual neck glands that sequester toxins from the toads it eats.
About 5-syllable snakes
That's our current list of snakes pronounced in 5 syllables. Want to combine with a starting letter? Try 5-syllable snakes that start with A.