NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Malaysian Brown Snake
Xenelaphis hexagonotus (Cantor, 1847)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Xenelaphis hexagonotus, also known as the Malaysian (or Malayan) brown snake, is a species of snake found across Southeast Asia. It reaches up to 2 m (6 ft 7 in) in length. The top of its body (the dorsum) is dark brown, with short black bars along its sides of the front part of the body, and it is white on its belly (the ventrum).
The habitat of X. hexagonotus is lowland waterlogged forests and mangrove swamps, and it is found from sea level up to 200 m (660 ft) above sea level. It is diurnal, and its diet includes rats and fish.
It is classified on the IUCN Red List as a species of least concern.
Wikipedia contributors, Xenelaphis hexagonotus; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T09:33:13.490305+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Xenelaphis hexagonotus (Cantor, 1847)
- Name authority
- (Cantor, 1847)
- Common name
- Malaysian Brown Snake
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Colubridae
- Genus
- Xenelaphis
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
- orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
- suborderSerpentes Linnaeus, 1758
- infraorderAlethinophidia Nopcsa, 1923
- familyColubridae
- subfamilyColubrinae
- genusXenelaphis
- speciesXenelaphis hexagonotus (Cantor, 1847)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Xenelaphis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Ocellated Brown SnakeXenelaphis ellipsifer Boulenger, 1900 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Coluber hexahonotus Cantor, 1847 Cantor, 1847 | synonym |
| Coryphodon sub-lutescens Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854 Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Xenelaphis&species=hexagonotus Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:5C94Q. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.