[5][6] Despite their large size, oriental ratsnakes are usually quite slender with even a specimen of 2 m (6 ft 7 in) commonly measuring 4 to 6 cm (1.6 to 2.4 in) only around in diameter[which?].

Rat snakes eat a variety of prey and are frequently found in urban areas where rodents thrive.

Found in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Cambodia, China (Zhejiang, Hubei, Jiangxi, Fujian, Guangdong, Hainan, Guangxi, Yunnan, Tibet, Hong Kong), Taiwan, India (including Andaman and Nicobar Islands), Sri Lanka, Indonesia (Sumatra, Java, Bali), Iran, Laos, West Malaysia, Nepal, Myanmar, Pakistan (Sindh area), Thailand, Turkmenistan and Vietnam.

[11] Rat snakes and related colubrids are aggressively hunted by humans in some areas of their range for skins and meat.

[12] Description from Boulenger's Fauna of British India: Reptilia and Batrachia volume of 1890: Snout obtuse, slightly projecting; eye large; rostral a little broader than deep, visible from above; suture between the internasals shorter than that between the prefrontals; frontal as long as its distance from the end of the snout, as long as the parietals or slightly shorter; usually three loreals; one large preocular, with a small subocular below; two postoculars; temporals 2+2; 8 Upper labials, fourth and fifth entering the eye; 5 Lower labials in contact with the anterior chin shields, which are shorter than the posterior; the latter in contact anteriorly.

They inhabit forest floors, wetlands, rice paddies, farmland, and suburban areas where they prey upon small reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals.

[11][14] Rat snakes mate in late spring and early summer, though in tropical areas reproduction may take place year round.