Lycodonomorphus

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Lycodonomorphus
Lycodonomorphus rufulus Brown Watersnake 4.JPG
L. inornatus ,
the Olive House Snake
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Lamprophiidae
Subfamily: Lamprophiinae
Genus: Lycodonomorphus
(Lichtenstein, 1823) [1]
Species

Nine recognized species, see text.

Lycodonomorphus is a genus of snakes commonly referred to as African water snakes. They are small, nonvenomous snakes, with all members being endemic to Africa, especially Tanzania. [2]

Contents

Species

The following nine species are recognized as being valid. [3]

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

Etymology

The specific name, whytii, is in honor of British naturalist Alexander Whyte (1834–1908), who worked in Nyasaland (now Malawi) from 1891 to 1897. [6]

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References

  1. EOL.org (Retrieved Mar. 22, 2010)
  2. GBIF.org (Retrieved Mar. 22, 2010)
  3. "Lycodonomorphus ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
  4. Kelly CMR, Branch WR, Broadley DG, Barker NP, Villet MH (2010). "Molecular systematics of the African snake family Lamprophiidae, Fitzinger, 1843 (Serpentes: Elapoidea), with particular focus on the genera Lamprophis, Fitzinger 1843 and Mehelya Csiki 1903". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution58 (3): 415-426. doi : 10.1016/j.ympev.2010.11.010
  5. JCVI.org (Retrieved Mar. 22, 2010)
  6. 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. (Lycodonomorphus whytii, p. 285).

Further reading