Elapsoidea sundevallii

Elapsoidea sundevallii
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Elapidae
Genus:	Elapsoidea
Species:	E. sundevallii
Binomial name
Elapsoidea sundevallii (A. Smith, 1848)
Synonyms [2]
Elaps sunderwallii [sic] A. Smith, 1848 Elapsoidea sundevallii — W. Peters, 1880 Elapechis sundevallii — Boulenger, 1896 Elapsoidea sundevallii — Loveridge, 1944

Elapsoidea sundevallii, also known commonly as Sundevall's garter snake or the African garter snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is native to Southern Africa. ^{[1] [2]} There are five recognised subspecies. ^[2]

Etymology

The specific epithet, sundevalli, honours Swedish zoologist Carl Jakob Sundevall (1801–1875). ^{[2] [3]}

The subspecific name, decosteri, is in honour of Belgian consul Juste De Coster, who collected natural history specimens at Delagoa Bay, Mozambique. ^[3]

The subspecific name, fitzsimonsi, is in honour of South African herpetologist Vivian Frederick Maynard FitzSimons. ^[3]

Geographic range

E. sundevallii is found in Botswana, Eswatini, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, and Zimbabwe. ^{[1] [2]}

Habitat

The preferred natural habitats of E. sundevallii are grassland, shrubland, savanna, and forest, at altitudes from sea level to 1,800 m (5,900 ft). ^[1]

Description

Adults of E. sundevallii are slate-grey to black or dark brown on the upper body, with whitish to pinkish bellies. Juveniles are banded. ^[2]

Males grow to be longer than females. The maximum recorded snout-to-vent length (SVL) for a male is 93 cm (37 in). The maximum recorded SVL for a female is only 65 cm (26 in). ^[4]

Diet

E. sundevallii preys upon frogs, lizards and their eggs, snakes, moles, and rodents. ^[4]

Venom

Although E. sundevallii is venomous and can inflict a serious bite, few bites have been recorded, and none has resulted in a human fatality. Symptoms may include pain and swelling, nausea and vomiting, blurred vision, and loss of consciousness. ^[4]

Reproduction

The species E. sundevallii is oviparous. ^[2] A sexually mature female may lay a clutch of as many as 10 eggs. ^[4]

Subspecies

The following five subspecies, including the nominotypical subspecies, are recognised as being valid. ^[2]

• Elapsoidea sundevallii decosteri Boulenger, 1888
• Elapsoidea sundevallii fitzsimonsi Loveridge, 1944
• Elapsoidea sundevallii longicauda Broadley, 1971
• Elapsoidea sundevallii mediaBroadley, 1971
• Elapsoidea sundevallii sundevallii(A. Smith, 1848)

Nota bene : A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Elapsoidea.

References

1. Alexander, G.J. (2021). "Elapsoidea sundevallii ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2021 e.T110168328A139744645. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-2.RLTS.T110168328A139744645.en . Retrieved 22 August 2022.
2. Elapsoidea sundevallii at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 22 August 2022.
3. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN   978-1-4214-0135-5. (Elapsoidea sundevallii decosteri, p. 67; Elapsoidea sundevallii fitzsimonsi, p. 91; "Elapsoidea sundevalli [sic]", p. 258).
4. Branch, Bill (2004). Field Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of Southern Africa. Third Revised edition, Second impression. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 399 pp. ISBN   0-88359-042-5. ("Elapsoidea sunderwallii [sic]", p. 106 + Plates 21, 32, 37).

Further reading

• Boulenger GA (1888). "On new or little-known South-African Reptiles". Annals and Magazine of Natural History, Sixth Series2: 136–141. (Elapsoidea decosteri, new species, p. 141).
• Boulenger GA (1896). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume III. Containing the Colubridæ (Opisthoglyphæ and Proteroglyphæ) .... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiv + 727 pp. + Plates I–XXV. (Elapechis sundevallii, new combination, pp. 360–361).
• Broadley DG (1971). "A revision of the African snake genus Elapsoidea Bocage (Elapidae)". Occasional Papers of the National Museum of Southern Rhodesia32: 577–626. (Elapsoidea sundevallii longicauda, new subspecies; Elapsoidea sundevallii media, new subspecies).
• Loveridge A (1944). "Further revisions of African Snake Genera". Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoölogy at Harvard College95 (2): 121–247. (Elapsoidea sundevalli fitzsimonsi, new subspecies, pp. 229–231).
• Smith A (1848). Illustrations of the Zoology of South Africa; Consisting Chiefly of Descriptions and Figures of the Objects of Natural History Collected during an Expedition into the Interior of South Africa, in the Years 1834, 1835, and 1836; Fitted out by "The Cape of Good Hope Association for the Exploring Central Africa:" Together with a Summary of African Zoology, and an Inquiry into the Geographical Ranges of Species in that Quarter of the Globe. [Volume III. Reptilia.] London: Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty's Treasury. (Smith, Elder and Co., printers). Plates + unnumbered pages of text. (Elaps sunderwallii, new species, Plate 56). (in English and Latin).