Elegant bronzeback (Dendrelaphis formosus)

Ular paku or elegant bronzeback (Dendrelaphis formosus) is an animal species in Colubridae, snake 1.6 mm long, light brown to black, green patches along the scales of the body, black lines from the snout through the eyes to the neck, esophagus and colored ventral scales light green.

D. formosus has a medium-sized, brown head, blunt rostral, no loreal pit, large, green eyes with large round and black pupils. The scales on the top of the head are large, lateral has a black line across the eye circles to limit the dark color and ventral parts are green.

The tail is brown or black with a yellow stripe on the lateral side and the green pentagon scales are joined to form a hexagon with sub-caudal scales in green pairs and sharp edges.

Elegant bronzeback is active during the day and spends a lot of time in trees, but sometimes it comes down to the ground in search of prey and water. They prey on geckos and lizards that live in trees. The female produces 6-8 eggs, incubation period of 13-17 weeks and the baby hatches measuring 30 cm.

Ular paku are often found in primary and secondary forests for altitudes up to 1100 m. Rarely found near human habitation, but appear on plantations or parks around rural areas.

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Subfamily: Ahaetuliinae
Genus: Dendrelaphis
Species: Dendrelaphis formosus

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