Brown tree snake

Brown tree snake
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Colubridae
Genus:	Boiga
Species:	B. irregularis
Binomial name
Boiga irregularis (Merrem, 1802)
Synonyms
Coluber irregularis Merrem, 1802 Boiga irregularis Fitzinger, 1826 Dipsas irregularis Boie, 1827 Triglyphodon irregularis Duméril & Bibron, 1854 Dipsadomorphus irregularis Boulenger, 1896

The brown tree snake (Boiga irregularis), also known as the brown catsnake, is an arboreal rear-fanged colubrid snake native to eastern and northern coastal Australia, eastern Indonesia (Sulawesi to Papua), Papua New Guinea, and many islands in northwestern Melanesia. The snake is slender, in order to facilitate climbing, and can reach up to 2 meters in length. Its coloration may also vary, some being brown, green, or even red. Brown tree snakes prey on many things, ranging from invertebrates to birds, and even some smaller mammals. It is one of the very few colubrids found in Australia, where elapids are more common. Due to an accidental introduction after the events of World War II, this snake is now infamous for being an invasive species responsible for extirpating the majority of the native bird population in Guam.^[2] Currently, efforts are being made to reduce and control the population on Guam and prevent the snake from spreading to other locations.