Erythrolamprus

Last updated

Erythrolamprus
Erythrolamprus almadensis na Estacao Ecologica de Santa Barbara Giordano Rossi (03).jpg
Almaden ground snake,
Erythrolamprus almadensis
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Subfamily: Dipsadinae
Genus: Erythrolamprus
Boie, 1826 [1]
Synonyms [2] [3]

Coluber, Coniophanes, Coronella, Elaps, Glaphyrophis, Natrix, Opheomorphus, Umbrivaga

Contents

An adult Erythrolamprus typhlus Adult swampy.jpg
An adult Erythrolamprus typhlus

Erythrolamprus is a genus of colubrid snakes native to Central America, the Caribbean, and South America. They include the false coral snakes, which appear to be coral snake mimics.

Classification

The genus Erythrolamprus belongs to the subfamily Dipsadinae (which is sometimes referred to as the family Dipsadidae), belonging to the family Colubridae. Erythrolamprus previously contained just six species, mostly coral snake mimics. However, molecular studies beginning in 2009 determined that Erythrolamprus was not monophyletic, and thus most of the snakes of the genera Liophis , Leimadophis , and Umbrivaga were placed into Erythrolamprus, bringing the number of species up to 50. [1]

Description

Erythrolamprus snakes are usually less than 1.6 m (5.2 ft) in length. They are ground snakes, with lifestyles ranging from fossorial (burrowing) to terrestrial to semi-aquatic, and in habitats ranging from rainforests to savannas to the mountainous páramo, up to 3,500 m (11,500 ft) above sea level. [1]

Species

These species are currently recognized as being valid. [4]

Nota bene : A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Erythrolamprus.

Mimicry

The brightly colored, ringed patterns of some of the snakes of the genus Erythrolamprus resemble those of sympatric coral snakes of the genus Micrurus , and it has been suggested that this is due to mimicry. Whether this is classical Batesian mimicry, classical Müllerian mimicry, a modified form of Müllerian mimicry, or no mimicry at all, remains to be proven. [5]

Cited references

  1. 1 2 3 Murphy, John C.; Braswell, Alvin L.; Charles, Stevland P.; Auguste, Renoir J.; Rivas, Gilson A.; Borzée, Amaël; Lehtinen, Richard M.; Jowers, Michael J. (15 Jan 2019). "A new species of Erythrolamprus from the oceanic island of Tobago (Squamata, Dipsadidae)". ZooKeys (817): 131–157. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.817.30811 .
  2. 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. (Genus Erythrolamprus, pp. 199-200).
  3. Genus Erythrolamprus at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
  4. "Erythrolamprus ". Integrated Taxonomic Information System . Retrieved 13 August 2007.
  5. Goin CJ, Goin OB, Zug GR (1978). Introduction to Herpetology, Third Edition. San Francisco: W.H. Freeman. xi + 378 pp. ISBN   0-7167-0020-4. (Mimicry in Erythrolamprus, p. 159).

Further reading

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coral snake</span> Large group of elapid snakes

Coral snakes are a large group of elapid snakes that can be divided into two distinct groups, the Old World coral snakes and New World coral snakes. There are 27 species of Old World coral snakes, in three genera, and 83 recognized species of New World coral snakes, in two genera. Genetic studies have found that the most basal lineages have origins in Asia, suggesting that the group originated in the Old World. While new world species of both genera are venomous, their bites are seldom lethal; only two confirmed fatalities have been documented in the past 100 years from the genus Micrurus. Meanwhile, snakes of the genus Micruroides have never caused a medically significant bite.

<i>Micrurus</i> Genus of reptiles

Micrurus is a genus of venomous coral snakes of the family Elapidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal ground snake</span> Species of snake

The royal ground snake is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to northern South America.

<i>Erythrolamprus bizona</i> Species of snake

Erythrolamprus bizona, commonly known as the double-banded false coral snake, is a species of colubrid snake, which is found in northern South America and Central America.

<i>Erythrolamprus aesculapii</i> Species of snake

Erythrolamprus aesculapii, also known commonly as the Aesculapian false coral snake, the South American false coral snake, and in Portuguese as bacorá, or falsa-coral, is a species of mildly venomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to South America.

Dixon's ground snake is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to Southeastern Brazil.

Erythrolamprus ornatus, also known commonly as the ornate ground snake and the Saint Lucia racer, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to the eastern Caribbean. It is the rarest snake on earth with fewer than 20 left in the wild.

The Barbados racer, also commonly known as the tan ground snake, was a species of colubrid snake that was endemic to Barbados. It is now extinct.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julia's ground snake</span> Species of snake

Julia's ground snake is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is found in the Caribbean, on the Lesser Antilles islands of Dominica and Guadeloupe.

Shaw's dark ground snake, also known commonly as Shaw's black-backed snake, and in Spanish as candelilla, guarda caminos, and reinita cazadora, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to northern South America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Military ground snake</span> Species of snake

The military ground snake is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to South America.

<i>Atractus</i> Genus of snakes

Atractus is a genus of colubrid ground snakes in the subfamily Dipsadinae. The genus includes more than 140 distinct species.

Erythrolamprus albertguentheri, also known commonly as Günther's green liophis, is a species of snake in the subfamily Dipsadinae of the family Colubridae. The species is native to central South America.

<i>Erythrolamprus pseudoreginae</i> Species of snake

Erythrolamprus pseudoreginae, the Tobago stream snake, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is found in the northeastern forests of the island of Tobago.

Erythrolamprus zweifeli, the braided ground snake or Zweifel's ground snake, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is found in Venezuela and Trinidad.