Acrochordus javanicus
Hornstedt, 1787
AK-roh-KOR-dus — jah-VAN-ih-kus
SSAR 9th Edition Comments:
Native to southeastern Asia (western Indonesia [Borneo, Java, Kalimantan, Sumatra], Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam). It was introduced during the early 1970s when an animal importer released several adult file snakes into an artificial rock pit at Jones Trailer Park in northern Miami-Dade County, Florida (Enge and Krysko, 2019, Acrochordus javanicus. Pages 448–450 in Krysko et al. (Editors) Amphibians and Reptiles of Florida. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, Florida). For at least 25 years, it was observed there swimming; five snakes were collected ca.1979 or 1980; a fisherman caught a large specimen on hook and line ca. 1990 (observed by numerous persons, including two Florida Game and Fish Commission wildlife officers); another fisherman caught and released a snake during the 1990s; a snake measuring ≥2.1 m TL was found floating dead ca. 1998; and one of the trailer park owners reported that residents there observed another snake swimming in the rock pit in 2002 (Enge and Krysko. op. cit.). Photographs of these snakes could not be secured, and no voucher exists from this site. Bartlett and Bartlett (2003, Florida's Snakes: A Guide to their Identification and Habits. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, Florida) and Meshaka et al. (2004, The Exotic Amphibians and Reptiles of Florida. Krieger Publishing Company, Melbourne, Florida) reported this species being present in Florida, but they were misled as to the actual location of the rock pit (Krysko et al., 2011, Zootaxa 3028: 1–64). In December 2002, five cold-stunned juveniles were purportedly found floating in the Tamiami Canal just west of Krome Avenue in Miami-Dade County (Krysko et al. op. cit.). In 2011, a snake was collected from a reptile dealer's facility in Hollywood, Broward County, Florida, where stock tanks drain outside onto the lawn (Krysko et al. op. cit.). It was not listed as established by Meshaka et al. (2022, Exotic Amphibians and Reptiles of the United States. University of Florida Press, Gainesville, Florida) due to the lack of a voucher from the rock pit colony.
(Krysko, Kenneth and Travis W. Taggart. 2025. Established Exotic Species. Pages 64-87 in Kirsten E. Nicholson (Editor), Scientific and Standard English Names of Amphibians and Reptiles of North America North of Mexico, with Comments Regarding Confidence in Our Understanding, 9th Edition. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, Lawrence, Kansas. 87 pp.)
Range maps are based on curated specimens and provided gratis by CNAH.
(Created by Travis W. Taggart; Version: 2025.03.30.20.33.42)
Download GeoJSON polygon range file: - 0.33 MB
Province/State Distribution:
United States: Florida
Taxonomic Etymology:
A nonvenomous aquatic snake with rough skin, native to Java.
Acrochordus — From Greek akron (ἄκρον), “extreme” or “tip,” and chordē (χορδή), “string” or “gut.” Possibly referring to the skin’s distinct roughness resembling coarse fibers or cords.
javanicus — From Java, the Indonesian island where the species occurs, with the Latin suffix -icus meaning “pertaining to.” Thus, “from Java.”
First instance(s) of published English names:
No historic English names have been assigned to this taxon yet.
Catalog of American Amphibians and Reptiles
The Reptile Database
GenBank
USGS - Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Database
Selected References:
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2003
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Bartlett, Richard D. and Patricia P. Bartlett. Florida's Snakes: A Guide to their Identification and Habits. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, Florida. pp.
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2004
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Meshaka, Walter E. Jr., B. P. Butterfield, and H. T. Smith. The Exotic Amphibians and Reptiles of Florida. Krieger, Melbourne, Florida. pp.
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2011
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Krysko, Kenneth L., Joseph P. Burgess, Michael R. Rochford, Christopher R. Gillette, Daniel Cueva, Kevin M. Enge, Louis A. Somma, Jennifer L. Stabile, Dustin C. Smith, Joseph A. Wasilewski, Guy N. Kieckhefer III, Michael C. Granatosky & Stuart V. Nielsen. Verified non-indigenous amphibians and reptiles in Florida from 1863 through 2010: Outlining the invasion process and identifying invasion pathways and stages. Zootaxa 3028(1):1-64
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2019
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Krysko, Kenneth L., Kevin M. Enge, and Paul E. Moler (Editor) Amphibians and Reptiles of Florida. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, Florida. 728pp.
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2021
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Deepak, V., Samuel Lalronunga, Esther Lalhmingliani, Abhijit Das, Surya Narayanan, Indraneil Das, and David J. Gower. Phylogenetic relationships of xenodermid snakes (Squamata: Serpentes: Xenodermidae), with the description of a new genus. Vertebrate Zoology 71:747-762
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2022
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Meshaka, Walter E. Jr., R. Bruce Bury, Suzanne L. Collins, and Malcolm L. McCallum. Exotic Amphibians and Reptiles of the United States. University Press of Florida, Gainesville, Florida. 245pp.
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