Ovophis jenkinsi

Last updated

Ovophis jenkinsi
Ovophis jenkinsi.jpg
Holotype individual in life
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Viperidae
Genus: Ovophis
Species:
O. jenkinsi
Binomial name
Ovophis jenkinsi
Qiu, Wang, Xia, Jiang, Zeng, Wang, Li & Shi, 2024

Ovophis jenkinsi, commonly known as the Jenkins' mountain pit viper, is a pit viper species found in Yunnan, China.

Contents

Taxonomy

The species Ovophis jenkinsi was first described in a 2024 study based on five individuals collected by Zhong-Wen Jiang and Xian-Chun Qiu in 2018 and 2023, all originating from Tongbiguan Township, Yingjiang County in Yunnan, China. An adult male (IOZ 002679) deposited in the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences was designated as the holotype of the species, while the remaining four specimens (consisting of two adult females and two juveniles) were designated as paratypes. The specific name jenkinsi honors herpetologist Robert William Garfield Jenkins, who aided snake conservation and management projects in China, and the common name "Jenkins' mountain pitviper" has been proposed based on this. [1]

A molecular phylogenetic analysis conducted by Qiu and colleagues (2024) found that within the Ovophis genus, O. jenkinsi is the closest known relative of O. monticola , and that the two species are clustered with O. convictus . The results of the analysis are displayed in the cladogram below: [1]

Vipera berus (Outgroup)

Ovophis
Ovophis tonkinensis

GP 1665

KIZ 011602

Ovophis makazayazaya

YPX 53011

GP 21

KIZ 02143

Ovophis zayuensis

GP 713

GP 1505

Ovophis malhotrae

ROM 39381

GP 2041

GP 2053

Ovophis convictus

AM B628

AM B580

AM B629

Ovophis jenkinsi

IOZ 002679

IOZ 002680

Ovophis monticola

ZMB 70216

ZMB 70218

Distribution and habitat

Views of the montane rainforest at the O. jenkinsi type locality in Tongbiguan Township Tongbiguang montane rainforest.jpg
Views of the montane rainforest at the O. jenkinsi type locality in Tongbiguan Township

All known individuals of this viper were found in Yingjiang County, Yunnan, and it is currently believed the species is endemic to this region. This snake is found at altitudes of about 1,300 m (4,300 ft) in tropical montane rainforest. In this environment, it overlaps with other reptiles such as Lycodon chapaensis , Trimeresurus popeiorum and Pseudocalotes jingpo . [1] [2]

Related Research Articles

<i>Gloydius</i> Genus of snakes

Gloydius is a genus of pit vipers endemic to Asia, also known as Asian moccasins or Asian ground pit vipers. Named after American herpetologist Howard K. Gloyd, this genus is very similar to the North American genus Agkistrodon. 24 species are currently recognized.

<i>Trimeresurus</i> Genus of snakes

Trimeresurus is a genus of pit vipers found in Asia from the Indian Subcontinent throughout Southeast Asia, China, and the Pacific Islands. Currently 44 species are recognized. Common names include Asian palm pit vipers, Asian lanceheads, and green pit vipers.

<i>Ovophis monticola</i> Species of snake


Ovophis monticola, commonly known as the Chinese mountain pit viper, is a pit viper species found in Asia. Currently, two subspecies are recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here. Recent taxonomic work suggests that most of these should be considered as separate species. IUCN has already evaluated O. m. makazayazaya as Ovophis makazayazaya.

<i>Trimeresurus albolabris</i> Species of snake

Trimeresurus albolabris, the white-lipped pit viper or white-lipped tree viper, is a venomous pit viper species endemic to Southeast Asia.

<i>Trimeresurus stejnegeri</i> Species of snake

Trimeresurus stejnegeri is a species of venomous pit viper endemic to Asia. Two subspecies are currently recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.

<i>Protobothrops mangshanensis</i> Species of snake

Protobothrops mangshanensis, commonly known as the Mangshan pit viper, Mt. Mang pit viper, or Mang Mountain pit viper, is a pit viper species endemic to Hunan and Guangdong provinces in China. No subspecies are currently recognized. This is a nocturnal pit viper that is also known as the ''Mangshan iron-head snake'', ''Chinese pit viper'', and the ''Ironhead viper''. They eat frogs, birds, insects, and small mammals. They have a white tail tip that they wiggle to mimic a grub so that prey comes into striking range—a behaviour known as caudal luring. The venom causes blood clotting and corrodes muscle tissue and can be fatal to humans if not treated. Unusually for vipers, P. mangshanensis is oviparous with the female laying clutches of 13–21 eggs which she will guard until they hatch.

<i>Ovophis</i> Genus of snakes

Ovophis is a genus of pit vipers found in Asia. Seven species are currently recognized.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Craspedocephalus trigonocephalus</span> Species of snake

Craspedocephalus trigonocephalus, the Sri Lankan pit viper, Ceylon pit viper, Sri Lankan green pitviper or locally, pala polonga, is a venomous pit viper species endemic to Sri Lanka. No subspecies are currently recognized.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yingjiang County</span> County in Yunnan, China

Yingjiang County is a county in Dehong Prefecture, Yunnan province, China, bordering Burma's Kachin State to the west.

<i>Ovophis okinavensis</i> Species of snake

Ovophis okinavensis, commonly known as the hime habu (ヒメハブ), Ryukyu Island pit viper, and the Okinawan pitviper, is a pit viper species found in the Ryukyu Islands of Japan. No subspecies are currently recognized.

<i>Protobothrops xiangchengensis</i> Species of snake

Protobothrops xiangchengensis, commonly known as the Szechwan pit viper, Kham Plateau pit viper, or Sichuan lancehead, is a pit viper species endemic to the Hengduan Mountains in south-central China. No subspecies are currently recognized.

<i>Trimeresurus gracilis</i> Species of snake

Trimeresurus gracilis, commonly known as the Taiwan pit viper or Taiwan mountain pitviper, is a venomous pit viper species endemic to Taiwan. No subspecies are currently recognized. The species is known as kikushi habu in Japanese.

Garthius chaseni, commonly known as Chasen's mountain pit viper, Chasen's tree viper, and the Kinabalu brown pit viper, is a species of pit viper in the family Viperidae. The species is endemic to the island of Borneo in Malaysia. No subspecies are currently recognized. It is monotypic in the genus Garthius.

Gloydius strauchi is a species of venomous pit viper in the subfamily Crotalinae of the family Viperidae. The species is native to western China. It is a small snake with a pattern of four longitudinal stripes, although some older specimens may be a uniform black. G. strauchi may be distinguished from G. monticola by its higher midbody dorsal scale count. This species jointly holds the altitude record for pitvipers together with Crotalus triseriatus of Mexico, both being found even above the tree line at over 4,000 m (13,000 ft). No subspecies were recognized as being valid, until a recent publication re-evaluated the taxonomic statuses of populations of G. strauchi and described the eastern Tibetan populations as a new species.

<i>Petrocosmea</i> Genus of flowering plants

Petrocosmea is a genus of the family Gesneriaceae, the African violet family. Many of the species within this genus are endemic to high-elevation areas in Western China, although some are native to other parts of Asia. including north-central and southern China, Indochina, and the eastern Himalayas. It is a rosette-forming genus that generally grows on wet mossy rocks or forests.

Trimeresurus yingjiangensis, also known as Yingjiang green pitviper, is a species of pit viper. It is endemic to Yunnan in southwest China. It is named after its type locality, Yingjiang County.

Gloydius lateralis is a species of venomous pit viper found in the Zharu Valley of Jiuzhaigou County, China. The species is active during sunny days in hot and dry areas along roadsides. The Zharu Valley is the sole known location of G. lateralis. This snake is assumed to eat small mammals like mice, based on the fur remnants found within its droppings. This species lineage is a sister taxon to G. swild, being morphologically and phylogenetically similar.

<i>Ovophis convictus</i> Species of snake

Ovophis convictus, the Indo-Malayan mountain pit viper, is a species of venomous snake in the genus Ovophis found in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Vietnam.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Qiu, Xian-Chun; Wang, Jin-Ze; Xia, Zu-Yao; Jiang, Zhong-Wen; Zeng, Yan; Wang, Nan; Li, Pi-Peng; Shi, Jing-Song (30 May 2024). "A new mountain pitviper of the genus Ovophis Burger in Hoge & Romano-Hoge, 1981 (Serpentes, Viperidae) from Yunnan, China". ZooKeys (1203): 173–187. Bibcode:2024ZooK.1203..173Q. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.1203.119218 . ISSN   1313-2970. PMC   11161677 . PMID   38855786.
  2. Xu, Yuhao; Gong, Yanan; Hou, Mian; Weng, Shiyang; Liu, Shuo; Deng, Jundong; Hu, Junkang; Peng, Lifang (7 March 2024). "A New Species of the Genus Pseudocalotes (Squamata: Agamidae) from Southwest Yunnan, China". Animals. 14 (6): 826. doi: 10.3390/ani14060826 . ISSN   2076-2615. PMC   10967363 . PMID   38539925.