[4] Additional common names include: cat-eyed night snake, come sapo, culebra de pantano, culebra destenida, machete savane, mapana de agua, mapana tigre, and ranera.

The head is distinct from the neck, and the large eyes have vertically elliptic pupils.

[2] It has a pair of enlarged, grooved teeth at the rear of each upper jaw (maxilla),[2] and produces a mild venom.

[citation needed] Snakes of the genus Leptodeira are oviparous, sometimes exhibiting delayed fertilization.

[7] Their eggs have been found in the fungus gardens of Acromyrmex and Atta colombica ants.