Ahaetulla

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Ahaetulla
Ahaya.dispar.jpg
Ahaetulla dispar
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Subfamily: Ahaetuliinae
Genus: Ahaetulla
Link, 1807

Ahaetulla, commonly referred to as Asian vine snakes or Asian whip snakes, is a genus of colubrid snakes distributed throughout tropical Asia. They are considered by some scientists to be mildly venomous and are what is commonly termed as 'rear-fanged' or more appropriately, opisthoglyphous, meaning their enlarged teeth or fangs, intended to aid in venom delivery, are located in the back of the upper jaw, instead of in the front as they are in vipers or cobras. As colubrids, Ahaetulla do not possess a true venom gland or a sophisticated venom delivery system. The Duvernoy's gland of this genus, homologous to the venom gland of true venomous snakes, produces a secretion which, though not well studied, is considered not to be medically significant to humans.

Contents

Green-colored members of this genus are often referred to as green vine snakes. They are not to be confused with the "green vine snake" Oxybelis fulgidus , which convergently appears very similar but is found in Central and South America.

Taxonomy

Their closest relative is the monotypic genus Proahaetulla , which Ahaetulla diverged from in the mid-Oligocene. From here, the clade containing Proahaetulla and Ahaetulla is a sister group to the genus Dryophiops , and the clade containing all three of these genera is a sister group to the clade containing the bronzeback snakes ( Dendrelaphis ) and flying snakes ( Chrysopelea ). [1]

In 2020, an analysis of Ahaetulla nasuta, Ahaetulla dispar , and Ahaetulla pulverulenta throughout their range found them to represent species complexes containing several undescribed or formerly synonymized species, leading to the description of A. borealis , A. farnsworthi , A. malabarica , A. travancorica , and A. sahyadrensis , as well as the resurrection of A. oxyrhyncha and A. isabellina . Ahaetulla nasuta and Ahaetulla pulverulenta , formerly considered to have much wider ranges, are now considered endemic to Sri Lanka. [2] [3]

Geographic range

They are found from Sri Lanka and India to China and much of Southeast Asia. Sri Lanka and the Western Ghats of India are major hotspots of diversity for the genus, with 10 of the 17 currently-described species being endemic to these regions. [4]

Species

The taxonomy of vine snakes is not well-documented, and literature varies widely, but there are 18 currently accepted species in the genus Ahaetulla: [4]

Several undescribed species (including the Southeast Asian Ahaetulla formerly assigned to A. nasuta) still likely remain in these complexes [2]

Ahaetulla prasina, showing keyhole shaped pupil Ahaetulla prasina2.jpg
Ahaetulla prasina, showing keyhole shaped pupil

Description

All Ahaetulla species are characterized by thin, elongated bodies, with extremely long tails and a sharply triangular shaped head. They are primarily green in color, but can vary quite a bit to yellows, oranges, greys, and browns. They can have black and/or white patterning, or can be solid in color. Their eyes are almost unique in the reptile world, having keen binocular vision and keyhole shaped pupils, being similar in this aspect with twig snakes, who also have keyhole shaped pupils.

Etymology

The genus name Ahaetulla comes from the Sinhalese name ehetulla for Ahaetulla nasuta, which means 'eye plucker' or 'eye striker. [5]

Vernacular names

The Sinhala name "Aheatulla" or "eye-plucker" forms the taxonomic genus name. In Tamil, it is known as pachai paambu, in Malayalam it is known as pachila paambu, in Telugu it is known as Pasarika Paamu, in Marathi, it is known as shelati snake, and in Kannada it is known as Hasiru Haavu. There are dozens of other vernacular names for this snake genus within its range. [6] [7]

Behavior

They are primarily diurnal and arboreal, living in humid rainforests. Their diet consists mainly of lizards, but sometimes frogs and rodents are also consumed. Ahaetulla fronticincta, however, feeds exclusively on fish, striking its prey from branches overhanging water. Ahaetulla venom is not considered to be dangerous to humans, but serves to cause paralysis in their fast moving prey choices. They are ovoviviparous.[ citation needed ]

Ahaetulla prasina, showing rear-set fang Ahaetulla prasina3.jpg
Ahaetulla prasina, showing rear-set fang

In captivity

Ahaetulla species are not yet frequently captive bred, as are many of the more popular snakes in the reptile keeping hobby. They are suitable for more advanced keepers, requiring a humid arboreal habitat and a diet of lizards as they rarely switch to rodents. Without proper husbandry, they are prone to health issues and stress.

Related Research Articles

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<i>Boiga</i> Genus of snakes

Boiga is a large genus of rear-fanged, mildly venomous snakes, known commonly as cat-eyed snakes or simply cat snakes, in the family Colubridae. Species of the genus Boiga are native to southeast Asia, India, and Australia, but due to their extremely hardy nature and adaptability, have spread to many other suitable habitats around the world. There are 38 recognized species in the genus. According to the study done by Jiří Smíd regarding Old World cat snakes, the ancestor of the cat snake originated in Africa, from where it diversified and expanded to other countries. Despite this diversity however, the different species have very similar needs in terms of temperature and precipitation.

<i>Monilesaurus rouxii</i> Species of reptile

Monilesaurus rouxii, commonly known as Roux's forest lizard, Roux's forest calotes, or the forest blood sucker, is a species of arboreal, diurnal, agamid lizard, which is endemic to hills of peninsular India. In July 2018, it was proposed that the species should be transferred to the new genus Monilesaurus.

<i>Ahaetulla nasuta</i> Species of venomous, snake

Ahaetulla nasuta, also known as Sri Lankan green vine snake and long-nosed whip snake, is a venomous, slender green tree snake endemic to Sri Lanka.

<i>Ahaetulla dispar</i> Species of reptile

Ahaetulla dispar, the Gunther's vine snake, is a species of tree snake endemic to the Western Ghats. It is primarily restricted to the Shola forests of the Southern Western Ghats where it is found often on high-elevation montane grasslands and the low shrub belts.

<i>Ahaetulla perroteti</i> Species of snake

Ahaetulla perroteti, known commonly as the bronze-headed vine snake, Perrotet's vine snake, or the Western Ghats bronzeback, is a species of mildly venomous, rear-fanged snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to the Western Ghats in South India.

<i>Ahaetulla prasina</i> Species of snake

Ahaetulla prasina is an arboreal, moderately venomous species of opisthoglyphous snake in the family Colubridae to southern and Southeast Asia. Its common names include the Asian vine snake, Boie's whip snake, Gunther's whip snake, and the Oriental whip snake.

<i>Ahaetulla pulverulenta</i> Species of snake

Brown-speckled whipsnake or brown vine snake is a species of tree snake endemic to Sri Lanka. Populations in the Western Ghats of India are now considered a separate species, Ahaetulla sahyadrensis. It is known as හෙනකදයා (henakadaya) in Sinhala; this name provided the name anaconda.

Green snake or Greensnake or Green Snake may refer to:

<i>Ahaetulla mycterizans</i> Species of snake

Ahaetulla mycterizans, the Malayan green whipsnake or Malayan vine snake, is a slender arboreal snake found in Western Peninsular Malaysia, Java and Sumatra of Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand and possibly Laos up to elevation of 350 m.

<i>Ahaetulla anomala</i> Species of snake

The variable colored vine snake is a species of opisthoglyphous snake in the family Colubridae. It is the first reported sexually dichromatic snake from the Indian Subcontinent, and until 2017 was formerly regarded as a subspecies of the green vine snake, Ahaetulla nasuta.

<i>Monilesaurus</i> Genus of lizards

Monilesaurus is a genus of lizards in the draconine clade of the family Agamidae and is a new genus described in 2018. Currently it consists of 4 species, with 2 new species and 2 species split from the genus Calotes.

<i>Proahaetulla</i> Genus of snakes

Proahaetulla is a monotypic genus of snake in the family Colubridae. It contains only one species, the keeled vine snake, which is endemic to the Western Ghats of India. Its natural habitat is montane rainforests of southern Western Ghats.

<i>Ahaetulla borealis</i> Species of tree snake

The northern Western Ghats vine snake is a species of tree snake endemic to the northern Western Ghats of India.

<i>Ahaetulla farnsworthi</i> Species of tree snake

Farnsworth's vine snake is a species of tree snake endemic to the central Western Ghats of India.

<i>Ahaetulla malabarica</i> Species of tree snake

The Malabar vine snake, is a species of tree snake endemic to the southern portion of the central Western Ghats of India.

<i>Ahaetulla isabellina</i> Species of snake

Ahaetulla isabellina, also known as Wall's vine snake, is a species of tree snake endemic to the southern Western Ghats of India.

<i>Ahaetulla travancorica</i> Species of Reptilia

The Travancore vine snake, is a species of tree snake endemic to the southern Western Ghats of India.

<i>Ahaetulla oxyrhyncha</i> Species of snake

The Indian vine snake or long-nosed vine snake is a species of diurnal, mildly venomous, arboreal snake distributed in the lowlands of peninsular India.Often mistakenly believed to peck out peoples' eyes, this misconception has led to widespread wanton killing of this species.

<i>Ahaetulla sahyadrensis</i> Species of snake

Ahaetulla sahyadrensis is a species of tree snake endemic to the Western Ghats of India. It is also reported from Bangladesh.

References

  1. Mallik, Ashok Kumar; Achyuthan, N. Srikanthan; Ganesh, Sumaithangi R.; Pal, Saunak P.; Vijayakumar, S. P.; Shanker, Kartik (2019-07-17). "Discovery of a deeply divergent new lineage of vine snake (Colubridae: Ahaetuliinae: Proahaetulla gen. nov.) from the southern Western Ghats of Peninsular India with a revised key for Ahaetuliinae". PLOS ONE. 14 (7): e0218851. Bibcode:2019PLoSO..1418851M. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0218851 . ISSN   1932-6203. PMC   6636718 . PMID   31314800.
  2. 1 2 Mallik, Ashok Kumar; Srikanthan, Achyuthan N.; Pal, Saunak P.; D’souza, Princia Margaret; Shanker, Kartik; Ganesh, Sumaithangi Rajagopalan (2020-11-06). "Disentangling vines: a study of morphological crypsis and genetic divergence in vine snakes (Squamata: Colubridae: Ahaetulla ) with the description of five new species from Peninsular India". Zootaxa. 4874 (1): zootaxa.4874.1.1. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4874.1.1. ISSN   1175-5334. PMID   33311335. S2CID   228823754.
  3. Kumar, Chethan (November 13, 2020). "IISc researchers discover 5 new species of vine snakes". The Times of India. Retrieved 2020-11-15.
  4. 1 2 "Search results | The Reptile Database". reptile-database.reptarium.cz. Retrieved 2020-12-25.
  5. Wall, Frank (1921). Ophidia Taprobanica or the Snakes of Ceylon. Ceylon: Government Press. p. 291.
  6. Snakes by Dr. P. J. Deoras, Bombay.
  7. Chapter 4 Result and discussion - Shodhganga
  8. Ajanta Minerals Dist. Gadchiroli (Maharashtra)