Enhydris dussumieri

Dieurostus dussumieri
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Subfamily: Homalopsinae
Genus: Dieurostus
Species: D. dussumierii
Binomial name
Dieurostus dussumierii
(A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854)
Synonyms
  • Eurostus dussumierii
    A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron
    & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854
  • Hypsirhina dussumieri
    Jan, 1868
  • Hypsirhina malabarica
    F. Werner, 1913
  • Enhydris dussumieri
    M.A. Smith, 1943
  • Dieurostus dussumierii
    Kumar et al., 2012[1]

Dieurostus dussumierii, commonly known as Dussumier's water snake, is a species of mildly venomous, rear-fanged, colubrid snake, endemic to Kerala, in southwestern India. It is also found in Bangladesh.[2][3][4]

Etymology

Both the specific name, dussumierii, and the common name, Dussumier's water snake, are in honor of
Jean-Jacques Dussumier, a French merchant, ship owner, and collector of zoological specimens.[5]

Morphology

Diagnosis (genus). Dieurostus is distinguished from all other homalopsids with 25 or 27 rows of smooth scales, nasal scales in contact, and posterior labials horizontally divided, by its divided internasal, upper labials 1–3 contacting the loreal, five lower labials contacting the chin shields (doriae has upper labials 2–5 or 2–6 contacting the loreal), and its striped pattern (sieboldii has a blotched-banded dorsal pattern, the internasal may contact the loreal, and it has three lower labials contacting the chin shields) [after KUMAR et al. 2012].

Geographic range

Dieurostus dussumierii is endemic to coastal plains of southwestern India (in Kerala) and also found in Bangladesh.

Habits

This is a thoroughly aquatic snake, and is more evident during the rains. This species has been sighted in inundated rice paddies, flooded crop fields and is very much at home in lakes and swamps. On land its movements are rather clumsy and laboured. It feeds mostly on fishes and takes refuge in crab-holes on mud banks and other such safe retreats near water bodies.

References

  1. The Reptile Database.
  2. fr:Dieurostus dussumieri
  3. http://www.toxinology.com/fusebox.cfm?fuseaction=main.snakes.display&id=SN0754
  4. http://www.catalogueoflife.org/col/details/species/id/6d8e437e2668ecf9714b155015bd6d7c
  5. Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M. 2011. The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Enhydris dussumierii, p. 78).

Further reading

External links


This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Saturday, March 19, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.