If someone asks me about my five favorite Indian snakes, I would include the cat snake.

Cat snakes, Boiga trigonata, are the snakes I always like to hold in my hand and play with them. A cat snake is basically a tree snake, so it is a slow moving snake like many other tree snakes.The best thing I like about the cat snake is that, if I hold its tail upside down,bit will slowly slowly coil back to its regular position.

There are 7-8 species of cat snakes found in the Indian sub-continent.The common Indian cat snake is the most commonly found amongst other cat snakes. Cat snakes are semi-venomous snakes which are also called rear fanged snake. Cat snakes are found across the world and in many places they are named as cat-eyed snake because of their vertical eye pupils which ressembles a cat's eye.

The common Indian cat snake is long and thin, and the body and tail are slightly compressed. It has large head with large cat -ike eyes and vertical pupils.

Colour is light brown with darker brown zig-zag markings. There's a brown streak behind each eye. The ventral part is yellow or white with small spots. The size varies from 100-125cms in an adult. As it is a tree snake it is mainly found on trees and bushes in grassland. It is a shy natured snake and usually does not bite but, when it is disturbed, lifts head to strike and vibrates its tail. Common cat snakes feed on lizards, frogs, geckos, small birds, and mice. It is oviparous and lays 5-8 eggs in tree hollows and it is nocturnal in nature.

I never got a chance to rescue a cat snake as they prefer hilly and dense jungle areas and unfortunately I live in a city. For every time I go out on herping I wish I could find a cat snake, it's like looking for a diamond in a coal mine.