Porthidium

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Porthidium
Porthidium nasutum (La Selva Biological Station).jpg
Porthidium nasutum ,
rainforest hognose pitviper
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Viperidae
Subfamily: Crotalinae
Genus: Porthidium
Cope, 1871 [1]
Common names: hognose pit vipers [2]

Porthidium is a genus of pit vipers found in Mexico and southward to northern South America. [1] The name is derived from the Greek word portheo and the suffix -idus, which mean "destroy" and "having the nature of", apparently a reference to the venom. [2] As of August 2016 nine species are recognized as being valid. [3] The snakes of the genus Hypnale in southern India and Sri Lanka look quite similar to those of this genus, possibly an example of convergent evolution.

Contents

Description

Porthidium is a genus of small species, adults ranging in total length (including tail) from 55 cm (22 in) ( P. dunni and P. yucatanicum ) to 75 cm (30 in) ( P. lansbergii and P. ophryomegas ). In addition, the body shape ranges from relatively slender (P. ophryomegas) to relatively stout ( P. nasutum ). All have a sharply defined canthus rostralis and a rostral scale that is higher than it is broad. The tip of the snout may be slightly to moderately elevated ( P. hespere , P. lansbergii, P. ophryomegas and P. volcanicum ), strongly elevated (P. dunni and P. yucatanicum), or not elevated at all. [2] All species have a color pattern that usually consists of a brown or gray ground color, overlaid with a series of dark paraventral blotches that are separated by a pale and narrow vertebral stripe. The blotches are square, rectangular, or triangular in shape. In some species, the color pattern is determined by the sex. [2]

Geographic range

Found in Mexico (Colima, Oaxaca and Chiapas on the Pacific side, the Yucatán Peninsula on the Atlantic side) southward through Central America to northern South America (Ecuador in the Pacific lowlands, northern Venezuela in the Atlantic lowlands). [1]

Species

Species [3] [4] Taxon author [3] [4] Subsp.* [3] [4] Common name [2] [4] Geographic range [1] [4]
P. arcosae Schätti & Kramer, 19930Manabi hognose pit viperCoast of Ecuador
P. dunni (Hartweg & Oliver, 1938)0Dunn's hognose pit viperSouthern Mexico in the Pacific lowlands of Oaxaca and western Chiapas.
P. hespere (Campbell, 1976)0Colima hognose pit viperWestern Mexico (Colima).
P. lansbergii (Schlegel, 1841)4Lansberg's hognose pit viperExtreme eastern Central America in the xeric coastal lowlands of central and eastern Panama. In northern South America in the Atlantic lowlands of Colombia and northern Venezuela, as well as the Pacific lowlands of Ecuador.
P. nasutum T(Bocourt, 1868)0rainforest hognose pit viperSouthern Mexico southward through Central America to western Colombia and northwestern Ecuador in South America. Inhabits the Atlantic lowlands from Mexico (Tabasco and Chiapas) through Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica to eastern Panama and northwestern Colombia. In the Pacific lowlands, it occurs in southwestern Costa Rica, central and eastern Panama, continuing on to northwestern Ecuador. It is found in mesic lowland broadleaf or rainforest from sea level to elevation of about 900 m.
P. ophryomegas (Bocourt, 1868)0slender hognose pit viperCentral America in Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.
P. porrasi Lamar, 20030Weißschwanz-StülpnasenotterSouthwestern Costa Rica
P. volcanicum Solórzano, 19940Ujarran hognose pit viperVolcán de Buenos Aires and Valle del General in Puntarenas Province, Costa Rica.
P. yucatanicum (H.M. Smith, 1941)0Yucatán hognose pit viperNorthern half of the Yucatán Peninsula in Mexico.

*) Not including the nominate subspecies.
T) Type species. [1]

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

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<i>Agkistrodon contortrix pictigaster</i> Subspecies of snake

Agkistrodon contortrix pictigaster was formerly a venomous pit viper subspecies found in the Trans-Pecos region of the United States in western Texas, and northeastern Mexico. However, recent taxonomic changes do not recognize the Trans-Pecos copperhead as a valid taxon.

<i>Bothriechis nigroviridis</i> Species of snake

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<i>Bothriechis aurifer</i> Species of snake

Bothriechis aurifer is a pit viper species found in Mexico and Guatemala. No subspecies are currently recognized.

<i>Porthidium dunni</i> Species of snake

Porthidium dunni is a species of pit viper in the family Viperidae. The species is endemic to Mexico. There are no recognized subspecies.

<i>Porthidium hespere</i> Species of snake

Porthidium hespere is a pit viper species found in western Mexico. No subspecies are currently recognized.

<i>Porthidium nasutum</i> Species of snake

Porthidium nasutum is a pit viper species found in southern Mexico, Central America and northern South America. No subspecies are currently recognized.

<i>Porthidium yucatanicum</i> Species of snake

Porthidium yucatanicum is a pit viper species found in Mexico. No subspecies are currently recognized.

<i>Porthidium lansbergii</i> Species of snake

Porthidium lansbergii is a species of venomous snake, a pit viper in the family Viperidae. The species is endemic to Central and South America. Four subspecies are recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.

<i>Bothrops taeniatus</i> Species of snake

Bothrops taeniatus, the speckled forest-pitviper, is a species of pit viper found in the equatorial forests of South America endemic to Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, And Brazil. The specific name, taenia, is derived from the Greek word, tainia, meaning ribbon bandage or stripe, in reference to the slender body. Two subspecies are currently recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.

<i>Porthidium ophryomegas</i> Species of snake

Porthidium ophryomegas is a venomous pitviper species found in Central America. No subspecies are currently recognized.

<i>Porthidium volcanicum</i> Species of snake

Porthidium volcanicum, the Ujarran hognosed pit viper, is a pit viper species endemic to Costa Rica. No subspecies are currently recognized.

<i>Gloydius intermedius</i> Species of snake

Gloydius intermedius, or Central Asian pit viper, is a venomous species of pitviper endemic to northern Asia. Three subspecies are currently recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.

<i>Gloydius ussuriensis</i> Species of snake

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<i>Gloydius brevicauda</i> Species of snake

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré TA (1999). Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, Volume 1. Washington, District of Columbia: Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN   1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN   1-893777-01-4 (volume).
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Campbell JA, Lamar WW (2004). The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere Ithaca and London: Comstock Publishing Associates. 870 pp., 1500 plates. ISBN   0-8014-4141-2.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Porthidium ". Integrated Taxonomic Information System . Retrieved 4 November 2006.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Porthidium ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.

Further reading

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