---
title: "Japanese Keelback"
description: "Hebius vibakari — Reptielen. The Japanese keelback (Hebius vibakari), sometimes called the ringed snake or water snake, is a species of colubrid snake, which is endemic to Asia."
canonical: https://animalchecklist.com/nl/animal/japanese-keelback
last_updated: 2026-09-20
---

# Japanese Keelback

> Hebius vibakari — Reptielen. The Japanese keelback (Hebius vibakari), sometimes called the ringed snake or water snake, is a species of colubrid snake, which is endemic to Asia.

- Scientific name: *Hebius vibakari*
- Category: `reptiles` (Reptielen)
- Habitats: `freshwater` (Meren en rivieren)
- iNaturalist observations: 901
- Wikidata: [Q30004730](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q30004730)
- iNaturalist taxon: [510952](https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/510952)

## Names

- en: Japanese Keelback
- de: Japanische Gebirgswassernatter

## Countries with the most observations

JP (452), KR (332), RU (39), CN (32)

## Summary

The Japanese keelback (Hebius vibakari), sometimes called the ringed snake or water snake, is a species of colubrid snake, which is endemic to Asia. It was first described in 1826 by Heinrich Boie as Tropidonotus vibakari.

Text: Wikipedia (en), CC BY-SA 4.0 — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_keelback

## Photo

![Japanese Keelback](https://animalchecklist.com/img/animals/japanese-keelback/medium.jpg)

Photo: renshuchu · CC0 · inaturalist — https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/232444166

## Machine access

`GET https://animalchecklist.com/api/v1/animals/japanese-keelback?lang=nl` — see [openapi.json](https://animalchecklist.com/openapi.json).