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Chinese green snake

species of reptile

Specimen drawers, botanical folios and brass scientific instruments under study light
Science and natureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionDec 30, 2025
Entity authorityQ2383395
Source-derived summary

The Chinese green snake (Ptyas major) is a species of snake in the family Colubridae.

Description

The Chinese green snake is a slender, medium-sized snake, averaging 75–90 cm (2½-3 feet) in total length, but occasionally growing to 120 cm (4 feet). Bright green above; ventral scales greenish-yellow. Dorsal scales smooth except that males have several mid-dorsal scale rows keeled. Some specimens have scattered black spots on dorsum. Dead specimens often turn bluish.

Distribution and habitat

The Chinese green snake can be found in central and southern China (Hainan, Henan, Gansu, Anhui, Sichuan, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hunan, Hubei, Jiangxi, Jiangsu, Shaanxi, Zhejiang, Hong Kong), Taiwan, northern Vietnam, Laos and Bangladesh (Sylhet, Ratargul Swamp Forest).

It is found in humid forests and farmland.

Behaviour and ecology

The Chinese green snake is diurnal and semi-arboreal. When encountered, they are mild-mannered and rarely bite.

Editorial summary

“Chinese green snake” enters the record as species of reptile. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Chinese, green and snake can confirm, complicate or overturn.

Editorial reviewA sound reference starting point where classification, measurement and the date of the underlying evidence remain visible. The current 141-word lead offers orientation but no explicit four-digit date, so chronology should not be assumed. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. Its strongest next move is a source search built around Chinese, green and snake.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

“Chinese green snake” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Chinese, green and snake provides the most credible route into that argument.

Evidence profile

Stable identifiers, scientific names and standards terminology offer the best bridge between this overview and specialist evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Dec 30, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q2383395. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.

Critical limits

Scientific names, classifications and consensus can change while older terminology persists in catalogues and historical literature. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Check terminology, classification and the date of the cited evidence. Scientific names and technical consensus can change while older records retain historical value.

Best used for
  • Current terminology
  • Classification context
  • Finding cited technical literature
Verify next

Primary datasets, specimen catalogues, standards bodies and the most recent peer-reviewed literature.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Chinese green snake”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Chinese green snake primary sources, Chinese green snake archive and Chinese research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Chinese green snake”?
  2. Which observation, specimen, dataset or publication supports the account?
  3. Has classification or technical consensus changed since the cited source?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Chinese green snake” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.