Rhamphiophis oxyrhynchus
species of reptile
Rhamphiophis oxyrhynchus is a species of mildly venomous snake in the family Psammophiidae. The species is native to East Africa. Its common name refers to its hooked snout, which it uses to dig burrows, and to its reddish-brown dorsal coloration. It hunts small animals during the day with the help of its venomous bite.
Taxonomy
The two subspecies are R.o. oxyrhynchus (J.T. Reinhardt, 1843) and R.o. rostratus W. Peters, 1854. Some authorities consider the latter to be a species, R. rostratus W. Peters, 1854.
Description
Rhamphiophis oxyrhynchus is large and stout, with males reaching a maximum length of 1.1 m (3.6 ft) and females reaching 1.07 m (3.5 ft). It has a shortened skull, as with all beaked snakes, giving it a clear distinction between its head and body, as well as a dark brown eye stripe running down the side of its head.
The public source identifies “Rhamphiophis oxyrhynchus” as species of reptile. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Rhamphiophis, oxyrhynchus and species.
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Stable identifiers, scientific names and standards terminology offer the best bridge between this overview and specialist evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 21, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2656629. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1843 and 1854.
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This entry incorporates text from “Rhamphiophis oxyrhynchus” 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.