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Dendroaspis angusticeps (SMITH, 1849)

IUCN Red List - Dendroaspis angusticeps - Least Concern, LC
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Higher TaxaElapidae, Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: Green Mamba
G: Blattgrüne Mamba, Gewöhnliche Mamba 
SynonymNaja angusticeps SMITH 1849: 70
Naja angusticeps — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1854: 1301
Dendraphis angusticeps GÜNTHER 1858
Dendroaspis intermedius GÜNTHER 1865: 98
Dendrospis [sic] angusticeps — BOULENGER 1897: 376 (in error)
Dendroaspis sjöstedti LÖNNBERG 1910
Dendraspis [sic] angusticeps — STERNFELD 1910: 57
Dendroaspis angusticeps — HARDING & WELCH 1980
Dendroaspis angusticeps — WELCH 1994: 55
Dendroaspis angusticeps — BROADLEY & HOWELL 1991: 24
Dendroaspis angusticeps — RAZETTI & MSUYA 2002
Dendroaspis intermedius — BROADLEY & BLAYLOCK 2013
Dendroaspis intermedius — WALLACH et al. 2014: 222
Dendroaspis angusticeps — WALLACH et al. 2014: 222
Dendroaspis angusticeps — SPAWLS et al. 2018: 561 
DistributionKenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Malawi, E Zimbabwe,
Republic of South Africa (Natal), Democratic Republic of the Congo (Zaire) [CHIFUNDERA 1990]

Type locality: Natal  
Reproductionoviparous 
TypesHolotype: lost, was BMNH 1946.1.20.48; lost fide Broadley in Golay et al. (1993: 128).
Holotype: BMNH 1946.1.20.48 [intermedius] 
DiagnosisUnfortunately we had to temporarily remove additional information as this was scraped by multiple AI companies who sell that data to their customers. These details, e.g. detailed descriptions or comparisons (about 706 characters), are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. 
CommentVenomous!

Synonymy: WALLACH et al. 2014: 293 list Dendroaspis intermedius as valid citing a pers. comm. by Wüster. However, W. Wüster recommended to leave it as a synonym of D. angusticeps for the time being (pers. comm. 25 Aug 2015). Tolley et al. 2025 found that intermedius does not warrant status as a valid species.

Habitat: fully arboreal (Harrington et al. 2018).

Distribution: see map in Tolley et al. 2025. 
EtymologyNamed after Latin “angustus, -a, -um” = narrow and the abbreviated term “-ceps” for “caput” = head. 
References
  • Aeberhard, R. 2008. Beobachtungen zum Verhalten der grün gefärbten Mambas (Dendroaspis viridis, D. angusticeps und D. jamesoni kaimosae) im Terrarium. Reptilia (Münster) 13 (70): 26-30 - get paper here
  • Aeberhard, R. 2010. Kunstpflanzen im Terrarium. Draco 11 (41): 64-68 - get paper here
  • Angel, Fernand 1925. Résultats Scientifiques. Vertebrata. Reptiles et Batraciens. [Mabuia (Mabuiopsis) jeanneli, Lygosoma graueri quinquedigitata, Ablepharus massaiensis]. In: Voyage de Ch. Alluaud et R. Jeannel en Afrique Orientale (1911-1912). - Paris, 2: 1-63.
  • Angilletta, Michael J., Jr 1994. Sedentary behavior by green mambas Dendroaspis angusticeps. Herpetological Natural History 2 (2): 105-111
  • Armitage, W. W. 1965. Observations on Differences in Morphology and Behavior of Dendroaspis angusticeps and Dendroaspis polylepis. J. Herp. Assoc. Africa (1): 12-16 - get paper here
  • Bates, M.F.; Branch, W.R., Bauer, A.M.; Burger, M., Marais, J.; Alexander, G.J. & de Villliers, M.S. (eds.) 2014. Atlas and Red List of the Reptiles of South Africa, Lesotho, and Swaziland. Suricata 1. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria, 512 pp.
  • Boulenger,G.A. 1897. On little-known snakes from Natal. Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (6) 20: 374-376 - get paper here
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