Identifying snakes can be rather difficult as they vary in colour. The Herald Snake (Crotaphopeltis hotamboeia) can be olive green or grey to brown above, with white speckles that occasionally form transverse bars, especially in juveniles. The head is darker than the body, and the temporal region is glossy, iridescent black, with the upper lip colour ranging from red, orange-red, yellow, white, to blackish. Certain lip colours may be dominant in some areas, but the dark temporal colour is more of a distinguising identifcation feature of the species, than the lip colour is. A common snake found throughout Sub-Saharan Africa, avoiding dry arid regions. These snakes are also referred to as Red-lipped Snakes, Rooilippie, White-lipped Snakes, Cat-eyed Snakes, or Black-templed Cat Snakes.