any of several species of snakes named for their usual predominating colour. In New Guinea and Australia the name brown snake is applied to seven species of the genus Pseudonaja. These venomous snakes are slender, small-headed members of the cobra family, Elapidae. Brown snakes range from 40 cm to 2 metres (16 inches to about 7 feet) in length. They are generally brown in colour, though some species also have black speckles or bands, and the bellies of most species are a creamy yellow. The snakes are active during the daytime and feed on small lizards, mice, and ground-dwelling birds. They are alert, fast-moving, highly venomous snakes that are quite dangerous to humans. Brown snakes are found over most of Australia. The best-known species is the eastern brown snake (P. textilis), which grows to about 2 metres (7 feet). Other species in the genus are the western brown snake (P. nuchalis) and the dugite (P. affinis).

New World brown snakes are the four species of the genus Storeria, family Colubridae. They are found from eastern Canada to Honduras and are small, mostly less than 30 cm (12 inches) long, shy, and nonvenomous. The northern brown snake (S. dekayi dekayi) is the only North American snake to survive in abundance in densely populated regions. The indigo snake (q.v.) is called brown snake in tropical America.