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... In time, however, the taxonomic history of the last three species became highly convoluted, since some authors considered them as subspecies of Micrurus frontalis, whereas others regarded them as valid species (Boulenger, 1896;Schmidt, 1936;Shreve, 1953;Roze, 1967;1983;1994;1996). In the 1950s, Hoge (1956) described M. tricolor from the Pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, but during the following decade Roze (1967) synonymized this taxon with M. f. pyrrhocryptus. ...
... In the 1950s, Hoge (1956) described M. tricolor from the Pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, but during the following decade Roze (1967) synonymized this taxon with M. f. pyrrhocryptus. Nevertheless, these taxa later were separated as subspecies of M. frontalis (Roze, 1983). Barrio and Miranda (1966) described M. f. mesopotamicus from the Mesopotamia region of Argentina (Entre Ríos, Corrientes, and Misiones provinces), but did not consider the description of Elaps baliocoryphus Cope (1860). ...
... Hoge and Romano (1979), however, recognized M. f. mesopotamicus as a synonym of M. f. baliocoryphus, but did not provide additional comments (Silva, Jr. and Sites, Jr., 1999). Roze (1983) followed the last opinion, and after examining Cope's holotype stated, "Micrurus frontalis is the most complex species in southern South America, whose geographic variation is not yet fully understood. Further material might reveal new arrangements of subspecies. ...
... In time, however, the taxonomic history of the last three species became highly convoluted, since some authors considered them as subspecies of Micrurus frontalis, whereas others regarded them as valid species (Boulenger, 1896;Schmidt, 1936;Shreve, 1953;Roze, 1967;1983;1994;1996). In the 1950s, Hoge (1956) described M. tricolor from the Pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, but during the following decade Roze (1967) synonymized this taxon with M. f. pyrrhocryptus. ...
... In the 1950s, Hoge (1956) described M. tricolor from the Pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, but during the following decade Roze (1967) synonymized this taxon with M. f. pyrrhocryptus. Nevertheless, these taxa later were separated as subspecies of M. frontalis (Roze, 1983). Barrio and Miranda (1966) described M. f. mesopotamicus from the Mesopotamia region of Argentina (Entre Ríos, Corrientes, and Misiones provinces), but did not consider the description of Elaps baliocoryphus Cope (1860). ...
... Hoge and Romano (1979), however, recognized M. f. mesopotamicus as a synonym of M. f. baliocoryphus, but did not provide additional comments (Silva, Jr. and Sites, Jr., 1999). Roze (1983) followed the last opinion, and after examining Cope's holotype stated, "Micrurus frontalis is the most complex species in southern South America, whose geographic variation is not yet fully understood. Further material might reveal new arrangements of subspecies. ...
... Synbranchus marmoratus forma parte de la dieta de numerosas especies, como lo indica la existencia de reportes para las serpientes Anilius scytale (Roze, 1983;Martins & Oliveira, 1998;Maschio et al., 2010), Erythrolamprus frenatus (Batista (Fiorillo et al., 2020), Erythrolamprus semiaureus (Bellini, 2013), Helicops infrataeniatus (Bellini, 2013), Helicops leopardinus (Bellini, 2013), Helicops polylepis (Flores et al., 2010), Hydrodynastes gigas (Bellini, 2013), Micrurus alleni (Burger, 1997;Solórzano, 2005), Micrurus diastema (West et al., 2019), Micrurus dumerilii (Roze, 1983), Micrurus baliocoryphus (Palumbo & Cacciali, 2005), Micrurus lemniscatus (Roze, 1983;Martins & Oliveira, 1998), Micrurus nigrocinctus (Travers et al., 2011), Micrurus surinamensis (Roze, 1983;Martins & Oliveira, 1998) y Philodryas patagoniensis (Theis, 2018); además del halcón Herpetotheres cachinnans (Costa et al., 2014). A pesar del elevado número de registros, este se convierte en el primer registro de depredación sobre esta especie para Colombia. ...
... Synbranchus marmoratus forma parte de la dieta de numerosas especies, como lo indica la existencia de reportes para las serpientes Anilius scytale (Roze, 1983;Martins & Oliveira, 1998;Maschio et al., 2010), Erythrolamprus frenatus (Batista (Fiorillo et al., 2020), Erythrolamprus semiaureus (Bellini, 2013), Helicops infrataeniatus (Bellini, 2013), Helicops leopardinus (Bellini, 2013), Helicops polylepis (Flores et al., 2010), Hydrodynastes gigas (Bellini, 2013), Micrurus alleni (Burger, 1997;Solórzano, 2005), Micrurus diastema (West et al., 2019), Micrurus dumerilii (Roze, 1983), Micrurus baliocoryphus (Palumbo & Cacciali, 2005), Micrurus lemniscatus (Roze, 1983;Martins & Oliveira, 1998), Micrurus nigrocinctus (Travers et al., 2011), Micrurus surinamensis (Roze, 1983;Martins & Oliveira, 1998) y Philodryas patagoniensis (Theis, 2018); además del halcón Herpetotheres cachinnans (Costa et al., 2014). A pesar del elevado número de registros, este se convierte en el primer registro de depredación sobre esta especie para Colombia. ...
... Synbranchus marmoratus forma parte de la dieta de numerosas especies, como lo indica la existencia de reportes para las serpientes Anilius scytale (Roze, 1983;Martins & Oliveira, 1998;Maschio et al., 2010), Erythrolamprus frenatus (Batista (Fiorillo et al., 2020), Erythrolamprus semiaureus (Bellini, 2013), Helicops infrataeniatus (Bellini, 2013), Helicops leopardinus (Bellini, 2013), Helicops polylepis (Flores et al., 2010), Hydrodynastes gigas (Bellini, 2013), Micrurus alleni (Burger, 1997;Solórzano, 2005), Micrurus diastema (West et al., 2019), Micrurus dumerilii (Roze, 1983), Micrurus baliocoryphus (Palumbo & Cacciali, 2005), Micrurus lemniscatus (Roze, 1983;Martins & Oliveira, 1998), Micrurus nigrocinctus (Travers et al., 2011), Micrurus surinamensis (Roze, 1983;Martins & Oliveira, 1998) y Philodryas patagoniensis (Theis, 2018); además del halcón Herpetotheres cachinnans (Costa et al., 2014). A pesar del elevado número de registros, este se convierte en el primer registro de depredación sobre esta especie para Colombia. ...
Boletín de la Asociación Herpetológica Española 31 (2): 13-15.
... has generated different interpretations and debates in the literature. Organ descriptions implicate those hemipenis can be fully capitate, partially capitate or non-capitate (Roze, 1983;Slowinski, 1995;Roze, 1996;Silva Jr. & Sites, 1999). However, there are also terminological problems in reference to different state conditions, as such: "semicapitate" state for M. diana, M. ancoralis, M. lemniscatus and M. isozonus (Roze 1983); "partially-capitate" for M. spixii and M. surinamensis (Roze 1996), and "almost capitate" for M. brasiliensis and M. ibiboboca (Slowinski 1995). ...
... Organ descriptions implicate those hemipenis can be fully capitate, partially capitate or non-capitate (Roze, 1983;Slowinski, 1995;Roze, 1996;Silva Jr. & Sites, 1999). However, there are also terminological problems in reference to different state conditions, as such: "semicapitate" state for M. diana, M. ancoralis, M. lemniscatus and M. isozonus (Roze 1983); "partially-capitate" for M. spixii and M. surinamensis (Roze 1996), and "almost capitate" for M. brasiliensis and M. ibiboboca (Slowinski 1995). Roze (1996) reported the partially capitate condition for the hemipenis of M. spixii, but the illustration refers to the hemipenis of the subspecie M. s. obscurus. ...
... Similar results were reported by Feitosa et al. (2007b) indicating a tendency for melanic patterns to occur in highlands populations of M. paraensis. According to Roze (1983Roze ( , 1994, the melanic condition represents a tendency observed for the species of Micrurus found in the Amazon basin and Andean foothills, the socalled "Amazonian melanism". Considering coloration as an important taxonomic feature, we believe that it is interesting to investigate more deeply the influence of altitude on the coloration of snakes, especially on species of Micrurus. ...
Historically, the Micrurus spixii species complex comprises four subspecies (M. s. spixii, M. s. martiusi, M. s. obscurus, and M. s. princeps), however, recently, some authors have considered only two full species (M. spixii and M. obscurus). In this paper, we report data on meristic, morphometric, color pattern in life and after preservation, cranial osteology, and hemipenis morphology to Micrurus spixii species complex. We examined 358 specimens throughout the geographical distribution, including the type-series of all taxa. Differences in color pattern and morphology of hemipenis and skull support the existence of only two diagnosable taxa, M. spixii and M. obscurus, both considered here as a full species. We corroborate the synonymy of Micrurus s. martiusi and M. spixii based on wide overlap of meristic and morphometric characters, as well as the similarities of color pattern, hemipenis and skull characters. We can distinguished M. spixii from M. obscurus (in parenthesis) by the combination of the following characters: black cephalic cap (vs. cephalic cap absent, with red parietal region), hemipenial body with spines dispersed on the asulcate surface (vs. spines arranged in rows on the asulcate surface), capitate condition of hemipenis (vs. organ partially-capitate), narrow parietal bone with posterior angular borders (vs. enlarged parietal bone with elliptical posterior border), and relatively long venom inoculating fangs (vs. relatively short venom inoculating fangs).
... Within Elapidae, the Asian coral snake genus Calliophis also represents a monophyletic clade and the sister group to all other Asian and American coral snakes [8]. The common ancestor of the American coral snakes migrated into North America in the late Eocene to early Oligocene, roughly 30-25 Mya [9], across the 40 Km Bering land bridge of deciduous and coniferous forests, which connected Eastern Eurasia and Western North America from the early Tertiary until the end of the Miocene [10]. Extant New World coral snakes, the only elapids found in the Americas, constitute a taxonomic complex represented by the genera Leptomicrurus, Micruroides, and Micrurus [8,9,11,12], although Leptomicrurus is not unanimously recognized as a distinct genus from Micrurus [2,13]. ...
... The common ancestor of the American coral snakes migrated into North America in the late Eocene to early Oligocene, roughly 30-25 Mya [9], across the 40 Km Bering land bridge of deciduous and coniferous forests, which connected Eastern Eurasia and Western North America from the early Tertiary until the end of the Miocene [10]. Extant New World coral snakes, the only elapids found in the Americas, constitute a taxonomic complex represented by the genera Leptomicrurus, Micruroides, and Micrurus [8,9,11,12], although Leptomicrurus is not unanimously recognized as a distinct genus from Micrurus [2,13]. Micrurus is by far the most speciose genus, with about 80 species distributed from the southern United States to Northern Argentina [14][15][16], while Leptomicrurus and Micruroides include four and one species, respectively [7,11,13,16,17]. ...
... Four or five subspecies are currently recognized: Guiana's ribbon coral snake, M. l. lemniscatus (Linnaeus 1758) [33] [lowland rain forest, open humid forest, and drier cultivated lands in northern parts in Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana, reaching in Brazil Amapa and N Pará]; Brazilian ribbon coral snake, M. l. carvalhoi (Roze 1967) [34], which has the largest distribution of any coral snake, from NE/Central Brazil and the eastern Amazon to Paraná, Argentina (Corrientes), and Paraguay (Amambay, Caaguazú), where it occupies primary and secondary Cerrado, parts of the Caatinga and Atlantic forest; the Trinidad ribbon coral snake, M. l. diutius (Burger 1955) [35] [lowland dry forest and low montane humid forest in Trinidad, E and SE Venezuela, southern Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana southward to the central Amazon region in Brazil]; Western ribbon coral snake, M. l. helleri (Schmidt & Schmidt 1925) [36] [Amazonian slopes and Orinocoan watershed of Colombia, south through eastern Ecuador, northern Bolivia, southern Venezuela and northwestern Brazil]; and M. l. frontifasciatus (Werner 1927) [37] [Bolivia, Brazil (Pará)]. This latter taxon was elevated to species status by Roze [9]. The Caatinga coral snake, M. ibiboboca (Merrem 1820) [38], is endemic to eastern Brazil, south of the Amazon [32], its range including Bahia, Sergipe, S Ceará, Alagoas, Maranhão, Paraíba, Pernambuco, Piauí, Sergipe, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Norte, where it represents the most abundant and widespread coral snake with distribution range in all Caatinga phytophysiognomies, from sea level to 800 m elevation. ...
Micrurus is a monophyletic genus of venomous coral snakes of the family Elapidae. The ~80 recognized species within this genus are endemic to the Americas, and are distributed from southeastern United States to northern Argentina. Although relatively few bites are recorded due to their reclusive nature, semi-fossorial habits, and their occurrence in sparsely populated areas, coral snakes possess powerful venoms that target the cholinergic system and, if early treatment is missed, can cause neuromuscular paralysis, respiratory failure, and death by asphyxiation within hours of envenoming. The to-date proteomically characterized 18 micrurine venoms exhibit a puzzling phenotypic dichotomy, characterized by the toxin arsenal being dominated either by pre-synaptically acting PLA2s or post-synaptic 3FTxs, and a general, but imperfect, distributional pattern of these venom phenotypes along the North-South axis of the American continent. The lack of perfect phylogenetic clustering suggests that phylogeny may not be the sole factor driving the evolution of the divergent venom phenotypes across Micrurus venoms. To shed new light on the origin and expression pattern of the 3FTx/PLA2 venom dichotomy, we have conducted a comparative proteomics analysis of venoms from the Brazilian ribbon coral snake, Micrurus lemniscatus carvalhoi, sourced from different localities in the Brazilian states of São Paulo; the Caatinga coral snake, M. ibiboboca, from central Bahia state (Brazil); two Micrurus specimens of uncertain taxonomy collected in the Brazilian states of Alagoas and Rio de Janeiro; and the Western ribbon coral snake, M. l. helleri, from Leticia, the southernmost town of the Colombian Department of Amazonas. Venoms from São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro showed 3FTx-predominant phenotypes, while in venoms from Leticia, Alagoas and Bahia PLA2s represented the major toxin family. Comparative venom proteomics suggests that both Micrurus venom phenotypes exhibit a high degree of toxin evolvability. Mapping the 3FTx/PLA2 dichotomy across the Americas points to a phylogeographic pattern for venom phenotypes consistent with, but more complex than, the North-South distribution hypothesis anticipated in previous investigations.
Biological significance
New World coral snakes (Micrurus: Elapidae) produce potent venoms that target pre- and post-synaptically cholinergic nerve terminals resulting in neuromuscular paralysis, and in severe envenomings, may lead to death from asphyxiation by respiratory arrest. Presynaptic β-neurotoxins of group IA PLA2 protein subfamily and postsynaptic α-neurotoxins with 3FTx fold are the major components (>80%) of coral snake venoms. Micrurine venoms exhibit a puzzling phenotypic venom dichotomy, characterized by the dominant expression of either α- or β-neurotoxins. The distribution of these alternative compositional profiles has been fragmentarily studied both across Micrurus phylogeny and along the North-South axis of the genus radiation in the American continent, from southern United States to Northern Argentina. The unpredictability of the neurotoxin profile across the distribution range of the coral snakes represents a difficulty for applying the most appropriate treatment upon a coral snakebite. A deep knowledge of the phylogeographic distribution and the evolution of dichotomic Micrurus venoms would be useful for tracing the evolutionary path to their present day phenotypes, rationalizing the patchy cross-reactivity of current Micrurus antivenoms, and improving the efficacy of antivenoms to neutralize coral snake envenomings.
... Hoge & Romano (1981), revising the poisonous snakes from Brazil, raised M. p. paraensis to the specific category. However, in posterior papers, the specific name was not adopted (see: Roze, 1982;Campbell & Lamar, 1989). Later, Cunha & Nascimento (1982) contributed to Hoge & Romano's (1981) affirmation, considering M. paraensis valid and distinct from the subspecies cited above. ...
... Cunha & Nascimento (1993), revising the snakes from east of Pará, considered the species valid and observed a greater variation in the meristic characters. Roze (1982) and Campbell & Lamar (1989) still considered M. psyches paraensis a valid species, in addition to considering M. donosoi a subspecies of M. psyches. ...
... Roze (1994) used the term "amazonic melanism" to characterize the melanin for the species from the psyches group, other species of Micrurus and colubrids. The variation on the number of black body rings does not differ from variation presented by Cunha & Nascimento (1978;1982;1993), Campbell & Lamar (1989) and Roze (1996). ...
A Neotropical snake, Micrurus paraensis Cunha & Nascimento 1973 from east of Pará state, Brazil is described. This snake is found in secondary forest vegetation and remnants of tropical rainforest in Suriname, and Brazil from Pará, Maranhão, Mato Grosso and Rondônia states. Some authors disagree about the validity of the specific status and they prefer to maintain the subspecific status. The objective of this paper is to enlarge the knowledge about M. paraensis morphology with a description of new systematic characters. External morphology of 64 specimens were analyzed. The species is characterized by the number of black bands on body (12 to 21) and by having a black cap beginning on rostral. The hemipenis is long and bifurcated.
... but the Micrurus frontalis complex is especially problematic. This is an assemblage of poorly defined taxa (Campbell and Lamar, 1989; Roze, 1983Roze, , 1994Roze, , 1996Scrocchi, 1990) ranging from the Cerrado formations of central Brazil and Bahia, through eastern Bolivia and the temperate areas of southeastern Brazil, to the Pampean regions of south Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Argentina (Fig. 1). It has the most southerly distribution, and is also the most diverse (currently four subspecies are recognized, but there have been as many as eight) of all the South American triadal coralsnakes. ...
... One of us (NJS) invested a great deal of time examining the holotype and the available specimens of major collections in Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay. Since Cope's descrip-tion (1859), the holotype appears not to have been examined by most later authors, who might have avoided taxonomic mistakes in describing new forms or suggesting taxonomic arrangements (Amaral, 1944; Mocquard, 1887; Roze, 1967Roze, , 1970Roze, , 1983Roze, , 1994Roze, , 1996Schmidt, 1936;Scrocchi, 1990). ...
... The position of M. lemniscatus multicinctus was interpreted by Roze (1967Roze ( , 1970 and Scrocchi (1990) as an intergrade between M. f frontalis and M. f altirostris and later (Achaval, 1997; Roze, 1983Roze, , 1994Roze, , 1996 as a subspecies of M. frontalis. ...
We present new molecular data (mtDNA sequences and allozymes) for several species of South American "triad" coral snakes. We present a phylogenetic hypothesis for the group based on analysis of molecular characters using both maximum parsimony (MP) and maximum likelihood (ML) optimality criteria. Results from both methods are generally congruent and suggest a basal position for the morphologically and ecologically unique Micrurus surinamensis. The M. frontalis complex is shown to be paraphyletic with respect to several other species in the parsimony and likelihood trees, but a topology constraining this group to monophyly cannot be statistically rejected compared to the best MP or ML trees. All analyses provide strong support for polyphyly of M. "lemniscatus" and in this case, the alternative monophyly topology is strongly rejected under both optimality criteria. These results underscore the need for a more detailed analysis of populations currently assigned to M. lemniscatus.
... In the New World, coralsnakes are a taxonomic complex consisting of more than 80 species, which generally have been allocated to three genera in the family Elapidae. Over the years, this amount of species diversity, coupled with the paucity of variable morphological characters exhibited by this group, has resulted in considerable taxonomic confusion (Roze, 1983(Roze, , 1996Roze and Bernal-Carlo, 1988;Slowinski, 1995;Campbell andLamar, 1989, 2004). ...
... Micrurus altirostris (Cope, 1860a) Micrurus ancoralis (Jan, 1872) Micrurus baliocoryphus (Cope, 1860a) Micrurus boicora Bernarde, Turci, Abegg, and Franco, 2018 Micrurus brasiliensis Roze, 1967 Micrurus carvalhoi Roze, 1967 Micrurus decoratus (Jan, 1858) Micrurus diana Roze, 1983 Micrurus dissoleucus (Cope, 1860a) Micrurus diutius Burger, 1955 Micrurus filiformis (Günther, 1859) Micrurus frontalis (Duméril, Bibron, and Duméril, 1854) Micrurus frontifasciatus (Werner, 1927) Micrurus hemprichii (Jan, 1858) Micrurus ibiboboca (Merrem, 1820) Micrurus isozonus (Cope, 1860b) Micrurus lemniscatus (Linnaeus, 1758) Micrurus meridensis Roze, 1989 Micrurus nattereri Schmidt, 1952 Micrurus obscurus (Jan and Sordelli, 1872) Micrurus ortoni Schmidt, 1953 Micrurus potyguara Pires, Silva Jr., Feitosa, Prudente, Pereira Filho, and Zaher, 2014 Micrurus pyrrhocryptus (Cope, 1862) Micrurus serranus Harvey, Aparicio-E. and González-A., 2003 Micrurus silviae Di-Bernardo, Martins, and Silva Jr., 2007 Micrurus spixii Wagler, 1824 Micrurus surinamensis (Cuvier, 1817) Micrurus tricolor Hoge, 1956 Micrurus tschudii (Jan, 1858) ...
... Micrurus tricolor was interpreted as a subspecies of M. pyrrhocryptus by Roze (1967Roze ( , 1994Roze ( , 1996, as a subspecies of M. frontalis (Roze 1983) and as a full species (Strüssmann & Sazima 1993;Silva & Sites 1999). Harvey et al. (2003) suggested it again as a subspecies of M. pyrrhocryptus which was accepted by Campbell & Lamar (2004). ...
... Some of the most important descriptive papers of coralsnakes (e.g. Amaral 1944;Schmidt 1936Schmidt , 1955Roze 1967Roze , 1983Roze , 1994Roze , 1996 used very limited sample sizes and the comparisons (meristic, morphometric and color pattern) were made without proper descriptions of morphological variability. Scrocchi (1990) was the first author to offer a comprehensive analysis using a larger sample size and some applicable statistics demonstrating that some morphological characters are variable within his sample of M. pyrrhocryptus used. ...
A new species of triadal coralsnake (Micrurus) is described from Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The new species differs from other Micrurus species in southern Brazil by the following characters: snout mostly black, head completely black, white gular region, triads with middle black ring 1.5 to 2 times longer than the external black rings, white rings shorter than the external black rings. The new species occurs sympatrically with M. altirostris and adds to the following known triadal species for the region: M. baliocoryphus, M. pyrrhocryptus, M. lemniscatus, and Micrurus decoratus. Its current range is restricted to Rio Grande do Sul but it may reach adjacent areas of Argentina and Paraguay.
... En Colombia se han descrito 33 especies y subespecies de Micrurus, algunas de ellas endémicas. Según Roze (1982), M. mipartitus se localiza exclusivamente en la parte septentrional de América del Sur en Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador y posiblemente Perú. Hasta el presente se han reconocido cuatro subespecies: ...
... Ahora bien, las que hayan podido cruzarlo en los últimos años por los puentes artificiales pueden ocasionar intergradación, pero no lo hemos podido constatar. Según la última revisión de M. mipartitus propuesta por Roze (1983), la subespecie correspondiente al Valle del río Cauca sería decussatus. ...
Se describen las características taxonómicas de la serpiente Micrurus mipartitus con base a especímenes de los Departamentos de Cauca y Valle (Colombia); según la variación en el número de anillos negros del cuerpo, su tamaño y forma, se distinguen dos poblaciones que dan origen a la descripción de una subespecie nueva, separada de la otra por una barrera fluvial. Se analiza un hábitat en el Sur del Departamento del Cauca, así como los hábitos alimenticios, reproductivos y el desarrollo de los huevos.
Taxonomic characteristics of M. mipartitus are given based on material from Departamentos of Cauca and Valle (Colombia). The existence of two color patterns and different number of black rings on the body, separated by a natural polluted fluvial barrier give the basis for the description of a new subspecies. Micrurus mipartitus popayanensis. The habitat and behavior of specimens from Southern Cauca are mentioned. Reproductive and feeding data are also analyzed.
... As a general rule in the genus Micrurus, scutellation and ornamentation of scales are greatly homogeneous, with all species retaining a similar pattern of head shields, smooth dorsal scales arranged in 15 rows without reduction and with no apical pits, divided cloacal plate (except in M. hemprichii (Jan, 1858)), and paired subcaudals (except in the M. spixii Wagler, 1824 complex) (Roze 1996;Silva Jr. & Sites 1999). Although traditional meristic characters are often of little value in diagnosing many species of Micrurus, their conspicuous aposematic color patterns are extremely useful for that purpose and have traditionally been used in the taxonomy of the genus (Roze 1983(Roze , 1996Slowinski 1995). However, the poorly understanding of the polychromatic phenomena in Micrurus lead some authors to erroneous identification or even unsuitable delimitation of species from the monadal group (Abuys 1987;Roze 1994;Feitosa et al. 2007a); since some taxa have polychromatic patterns not geographically established (Soini 1974). ...
... Cunha & Nascimento (1982) recognized both taxa in the specific status. Roze (1983), however, in disagreement with Cunha & Nascimento (1982) kept M. ornatissimus as subspecies of M. langsdorffi, being followed by subsequent authors (Perez-Santos & Moreno 1988;Welch 1994). The stabilization of the full species status for M. ornatissimus was only reached after Silva Jr. (1993), Silva Haad (1994, and Roze (1996). ...
We described a new species of monadal coral snake of the genus Micrurus from the region of Tabatinga and Leticia, along the boundaries of Brazil, Colombia, and Peru. The new species can be distinguished from the other congeners by the combination of the following characters: absence of a pale nuchal collar; black cephalic-cap extending from rostral to first dorsal scale and enclosing white tipped prefrontal scales; upper half of first to four supralabials and postoculars black; tricolor body coloration, with 27–31 black rings bordered by narrower white rings and 27–31 red rings; tail coloration similar to body, with alternating black rings bordered by irregular narrow white rings, red rings of the same width as the black rings; ventral scales 205–225; subcaudal scales 39–47.
... 2023). The diet of coral snakes of the genus Micrurus is known to consist largely of elongate prey, such as snakes, amphisbaenians, lizards, caecilians and, to a lesser extent, fishes, notably eels (Roze 1982;Banci et al. 2017; Fernández-Roldán and Gómez-Sánchez 2021). Generally speaking, that also applies to the diet of M. mipartitus which is known to prey on snakes, amphisbaenians, lizards, caecilians (including Caecilia spp.) and frogs (Rios-Soto et al. 2018;). ...
Kleptoparasitism, or food theft, is seldom reported in wild populations of snakes. Here, we describe as case where two Red-tailed Coral Snakes, Micrurus mipartitus , were observed competing for the same caecilian prey, either Caecilia leucocephala or C. perdita . This took place at night in a rainforest habitat in Valle del Cauca Department, western Colombia. Upon our arrival, the battle had already started as the two coral snakes kept bite-holds on the caecilian. They continued biting the prey at different places on the anterior parts and tugging in opposite directions. The snakes also made rotations along the longitudinal axis as they maintained their bite-holds. Surprisingly, one snake also bit the body of the other snake once. After 17 minutes of observation, the losing coral snake released its bite-hold on the caecilian. The winner then moved away from the losing snake which did not follow. It is well-known that M. mipartitus and other coral snakes eat caecilians, but this is the first observation of kleptoparasitism in elapid snakes in the wild. It is considered likely that they rely on chemoreception when detecting caecilians, notably in this case as two coral snakes detected the same prey item. In general, kleptoparasitism may occur more frequently amongst snakes than indicated by the very few published cases considering that numerous cases from captivity are known.
... The evolution of mimicry is related to the sympatric presence of both non-venomous and venomous species, the model to be imitated (Pfennig et al., 2001;Kikuchi & Pfennig, 2010). This is an important prediction of Batesian mimicry theory (Roze, 1983;Rabosky et al., 2016). Based on the dual morphology of the rostral scale and the Batesian mimicry presented by Xenodon species, we used ancestral character reconstruction to investigate the patterns of evolution of both the rostral scale and mimicry. ...
Snakes are a stimulating life form from an evolutionary perspective. Despite the basic morphological body shape (limbless, with a tubular body), these vertebrates are extremely diverse. The Neotropical region is one of the most diverse regions for snakes in the world, with >650 known species. Within this great diversity, the genus Xenodon includes 12 species with interesting adaptations to terrestrial and semi-fossorial habitats. Members of this genus are mostly diurnal and terrestrial, feed mainly on anurans and exhibit Batesian mimicry of venomous snakes of the genera Bothrops or Micrurus. Here, through phylogenetic analysis and ancestral state estimation, we explore the evolution of the rostral scale and mimicry within the genus Xenodon. Our results suggest that the ancestral lineage of Xenodon had a rounded rostral scale and exhibited Bothrops mimicry. The evolution of the rostral scale in Xenodon might be related to abiotic factors, as an adaptation for open and forested habitats, and mimicry is likely to be related to biotic factors, as a defensive strategy resembling those of venomous snakes.
... That might lead one to think that other defense mechanisms (such as thanatosis) would not be necessary. However, aposematic coloration might be part of a composition of anti-predator behaviors that, as a whole, is more effective than the sum of its parts, something suggested for coralsnakes by Roze (1982). At least for visually guided predators, both coloration and behavior are effective (Gonzales and de Oliveira 2020), so presenting them together would appear to improve a snake's chances of survival. ...
Thanatosis (pretending to be dead), sometimes called letisimulation, is widely used as an anti-predator strategy by snakes. Herein we report six cases of death-feigning in six species of Panamanian snakes (Dark-headed Red Falseboa, Pseudoboa neuwiedii; Double-banded False Coralsnake, Erythrolamprus bizona; Forest Flamesnake, Oxyrhopus petolarius; Rufous-headed Snake, Amastridium veliferum; Colombian Long-tailed Snake, Enuliophis sclateri; and Pacific Banded Coffee Snake, Ninia maculata). We also present a literature review of thanatosis in American snakes and discuss the terminology associated with this behavior.
... Greene (1973b) provided a review on the diet of Micrurus lemniscatus. The available information (Beebe 1946;Greene 1973b;Nascimento 1978 1982a;Dixon and Soini 1986;Roze 1982Roze 1996Sazima and Abe 1991;Vanzolini 1986; this study) show that M. lemniscatus feeds on terrestrial and aquatic long-bodied vertebrates: freshwater eels (Gymnotus, Synbrachus), caecilians (Microcaecilia, Oscecilia), snakes (Typhlops, Atractus, Hydrops, Liophis, Micrurus), amphisbaenians (Amphisbaena, Leposternon), and lizards (Bachia). ...
... Greene (1973b) provided a review on the diet of Micrurus lemniscatus. The available information (Beebe 1946;Greene 1973b;Nascimento 1978 1982a;Dixon and Soini 1986;Roze 1982Roze 1996Sazima and Abe 1991;Vanzolini 1986; this study) show that M. lemniscatus feeds on terrestrial and aquatic long-bodied vertebrates: freshwater eels (Gymnotus, Synbrachus), caecilians (Microcaecilia, Oscecilia), snakes (Typhlops, Atractus, Hydrops, Liophis, Micrurus), amphisbaenians (Amphisbaena, Leposternon), and lizards (Bachia). ...
... Greene (1973b) provided a review on the diet of Micrurus lemniscatus. The available information (Beebe 1946;Greene 1973b;Nascimento 1978 1982a;Dixon and Soini 1986;Roze 1982Roze 1996Sazima and Abe 1991;Vanzolini 1986; this study) show that M. lemniscatus feeds on terrestrial and aquatic long-bodied vertebrates: freshwater eels (Gymnotus, Synbrachus), caecilians (Microcaecilia, Oscecilia), snakes (Typhlops, Atractus, Hydrops, Liophis, Micrurus), amphisbaenians (Amphisbaena, Leposternon), and lizards (Bachia). ...
... Greene (1973b) provided a review on the diet of Micrurus lemniscatus. The available information (Beebe 1946;Greene 1973b;Nascimento 1978 1982a;Dixon and Soini 1986;Roze 1982Roze 1996Sazima and Abe 1991;Vanzolini 1986; this study) show that M. lemniscatus feeds on terrestrial and aquatic long-bodied vertebrates: freshwater eels (Gymnotus, Synbrachus), caecilians (Microcaecilia, Oscecilia), snakes (Typhlops, Atractus, Hydrops, Liophis, Micrurus), amphisbaenians (Amphisbaena, Leposternon), and lizards (Bachia). ...
... B. Lomonte, et al. Toxicon 167 (2019) 144-151 only partially known, consisting of snakes, lizards, cecilians, freshwater eels and other fish, but do not include rodents (Roze, 1983;Greene, 1984;da Silva and Aird, 2001;Solórzano, 2005;Souza et al., 2011;Urdaneta et al., 2004). In addition, these snakes are not particularly abundant or easy to find, in general, due to their semi-fossorial and secretive habits (de Almeida et al., 2016). ...
Abstract
Venoms from Micrurus (New World coral snakes) display potent peripheral neurotoxicity which may cause death by respiratory paralysis, yet many are poorly or not characterized. The major venom components of coral snakes are three-finger toxins (3FTxs) and phospholipases A2, whose proportions vary among species. As a trend, venoms of Micrurus from South America contain high proportions of 3FTxs, in contrast to most North and Central American species. Micrurus tschudii tschudii, the 'Desert coral snake' from Perú, displays an extreme 3FTx-predominant venom phenotype, with 95% of its proteome belonging to this protein family. This study evaluated the toxicity of its major 3FTxs in mice. A lethal 3FTx, here named tschuditoxin-I, was purified and sequenced by MALDI-TOF-TOF and N-terminal degradation. Tschuditoxin-I showed highest similarity to MS-1, a short-chain -neurotoxin from the aquatic, fish-eating coral snake M. surinamensis. The single amino acid substitution between these two toxins maps at the tip of the first -stranded 'finger' in the modeled structure of tschuditoxin-I, suggesting it may have a role in interaction with its target, which remains to be investigated. Owing to its lethal action, tschuditoxin-I is likely to be medically relevant in envenomings. In spite of its 74% sequence identity with an -neurotoxin of M. nigrocinctus, an equine antivenom raised against venom of the latter did not immunorecognize tschuditoxin-I or M. t. tschudii venom by ELISA. This underscores the need of characterizing the biochemical and immunological properties of the main toxic components of Micrurus venoms, aiming to improve the limited para-specific coverage of current antivenoms.
... Vertebrate predators of onychophorans include birds and reptiles. Turdus grayi Bonaparte (Clay-colored Thrush) have been observed feeding onychophorans to nestlings (Dyrcz 1982), and the South American coral snake Micrurus hemprichii (Jan) preys almost totally on onychophorans (Monge-Nájera et al. 1993, Roze 1982. Inactive onychophorans have been observed resting on leaves about 0.5 m above ground level in locations where this snake is found, The reproductive behavior of onychophorans is largely understudied. ...
... In this regard, M. ruatanus can be classified as a "3FTxrich" venom in the proposed 3FTx/PLA 2 phenotype dichotomy for Micrurus venoms [10,11]. This venom composition is interesting since M. ruatanus was considered a subspecies of M. nigrocinctus by some authors for a period of time [21], but it was later classified as a distinct species [1,2]. The current analysis shows that these venoms have a different distribution of toxin families, since M. nigrocinctus venom is a "PLA 2predominant" venom [15], in contrast to M. ruatanus. ...
A proteomic and toxicological study of the venom from one specimen of Micrurus ruatanus, a critically endangered coral snake species endemic to Roatan Island, Honduras, was carried out. Immunorecognition and neutralization of venom lethality by an anticoral antivenom was also evaluated. Forty peaks were collected from RP-HPLC fractionation of the venom. After SDS-PAGE analysis, fifty-eight bands were examined by MALDI-TOF/TOF mass spectrometry. Micrurus ruatanus venom displayed a three-finger toxin (3FTx)-rich venom phenotype, as well as a significant amount of phospholipases A2 (PLA2s). Various other proteins were identified, including Kunitz-type inhibitor proteins, L-amino acid oxidases, C-type lectin/lectin-like, metalloproteinases, serine proteinases, vespryn/ohanin, 5′-nucleotidases, glutathione peroxidases, and phosphodiesterases. Micrurus ruatanus venom displayed significant PLA2 activity in vitro and myotoxicity in vivo. The venom showed high lethal potency in mice, being one of the most lethal in Central America. The anticoral antivenom (SAC-ICP) produced by Instituto Clodomiro Picado neutralized the lethal activity of the venom. Major fractions with relevant lethal activity were also identified by a screening analysis. Significance: The proteomic characterization, toxicity, immunorecognition and neutralization of Micrurus ruatanus venom have been determined for the first time. This coral snake is endemic to Roatan Island and contains a three-finger toxin-rich venom that displayed a potent lethal activity in mice. The anticoral antivenom produced by Instituto Clodomiro Picado neutralized the lethal activity of this venom in vivo, and therefore should be effective in the treatment of envenomings by this snake.
... Besides improvement in our evolutionary knowledge generated by molecular evidence, hemipenial characters have also been successfully used as key morphological traits to trace phylogenetic relationships at different taxonomic levels (Dowling, 1967(Dowling, , 2002Keogh, 1996Keogh, , 1999Roze, 1982;Zaher, 1999;Zaher et al., 2009). Hemipenial morphology can be used to diagnose monophyletic clades in several taxonomic levels (Grazziotin et al., 2012;Guerra-Fuentes, Costa, Missassi, & Prudente, 2017;Zaher et al., 2009). ...
Typhlopidae is the most diverse family of Scolecophidia, with 269 species. Amerotyphlops was recently erected within subfamily Typhlopinae and comprises fifteen species distributed from Mexico to Argentina and the southern Lesser Antilles. Despite recent advances, affinities among typhlopines remain poorly explored, and the phylogenetic relationships and morphology of the South American (SA) species were never accessed before. Here, we performed a phylogenetic analysis including 106 species of Typhlopidae and ten genes. Our dataset represents the most comprehensive for SA species, containing seven of eight recognized species. Corroborating previous studies, we recovered the main groups of Typhlopoidea, and for typhlopines, we recovered with strong support two clades: (a) the Greater Antilles radiation, and the (b) Lesser Antilles and SA radiation. Within the SA radiation, we recovered four main lineages: (a) a clade formed by A. tasymicris and A. minuisquamus; (b) a clade composed by A. reticulatus as the sister group of all other SA species; (c) a clade composed by A. brongersmianus as the sister group of a clade comprising all Northeast Brazilian Species (NBS); and (d) a clade of the NBS, including A. yonena-gae, A. arenensis, A. paucisquamus, and A. amoipira. We supplemented our phylo-genetic result with the description of hemipenial morphology for seven SA species and comment their relevance to the systematics of Typhlopinae. Hemipenes of SA Amerotyphlops follow the general pattern in scolecophidians (single organ with un-divided sulcus). Only A. reticulatus and A. minuisquamus have organs with calcified spines. According to our results, hemipenial ornamentation have shown highly informative and could represent a potential source of systematic and taxonomic characters in that group. We also present an extensive review of the geographical distribution for all SA species. Our study represents the first integrative analysis of a poorly known evolutionary radiation of one of the most widespread SA fossorial snakes.
... The genus Micrurus Wagler, 1824 currently comprises 78 species distributed from southeastern United States to Argentina (Roze 1983, Campbell & Lamar 2004, Silva-Jr et al. 2016. The members of the Micrurus hemprichii species group are distinguished from all other congeners by having a single cloacal plate, which is divided in all other species of Micrurus. ...
A new species of elapid snake of the genus Micrurus is described herein, from the states of Rondônia and Mato Grosso, in the western Brazilian Amazon. The new species has a single anal plate, a unique characteristic shared with members of the M. hemprichii species group. It can be distinguished from the other members of this group by having a parietal reddish band in juveniles (absent in adults) and the absence of brownish or orange-yellow dorsal body bands. In addition, this species is distinguished from M. hemprichii by its lower number of body triads, and from M. ortoni by its lower numbers of ventrals and subcaudals scales. © 2018 Deutsche Gesellschaft für Herpetologie und Terrarienkunde e.V. (DGHT), Mannheim, Germany.
... Las serpientes marinas (Pelamis) no siguen este patrón de coloración pero son venenosas. Este grupo de serpientes venenosas poseen unos colmillos inoculadores pequeños y fijos en la parte anterior del maxilar superior (pertenecientes a la familia Elapidae) (15,16). ...
... The genus Micrurus Wagler, 1824 currently comprises 78 species distributed from southeastern United States to Argentina (Roze 1983, Campbell & Lamar 2004, Silva-Jr et al. 2016. The members of the Micrurus hemprichii species group are distinguished from all other congeners by having a single cloacal plate, which is divided in all other species of Micrurus. ...
... In Brazil, it occurs in the Atlantic Forest in the Southern and Southeastern states, and in forest fragments of the Northeast States (Roze, 1967, Silva & Nunes, 1996, Freire, 2001, Argôlo, 2004, Campbell & Lamar, 2004, Wallach et al., 2014, Silva-Jr et al., 2016. Similar to other congeneric species, the diet of Micrurus corallinus is composed by elongated prey (Roze, 1983;Marques & Sazima, 1997;Silva-Jr et al., 2016;Silva-Soares & Castro, 2016;Banci et al., 2017). ...
... A major limitation in the study of Micrurus venoms relates to their availability. Most coral snakes are stenophagous predators that specialize in ectotherms, often snakes, lizards, fishes, or invertebrates (Roze, 1983(Roze, , 1996, and thus do not feed readily in captivity. Commonly these snakes suffer from high mortality after few months. ...
... Las hembras tienden a aparearse con los machos de mayor tamaño corporal y que emiten Chucks en su llamado; ellas también utilizan los sacos vocales de los machos como señales visuales para escoger pareja (Ryan 1980, Rand y Ryan 1981, Rosenthal et al. 2004. Las hembras dejan sus huevos, entre 80 y 450, en nidos de espuma cuya función es reducir la mortalidad de embriones por desecación y proveer un ambiente térmico para su rápido desarrollo ( Fig. 4) et al. 1982, Tuttle et al. 1982, Bernal et al. 2006. ...
... Several studies have reported prey animals and stomach contents of Coral Snakes, which include caecilians, amphisbaenians, lizards and the fresh-water fish Synbranchus marmoratus (Schmidt, 1932;Cunha and Nascimento, 1978;Roze, 1982;Greene, 1984;Sazima and Abe, 1991). ...
We evaluate adaptation of eleven species of wild-caught snakes maintained in captivity for venom production using two procedures for estimating survival rates. Kaplan-Meier estimations of survival time provide a better account of subsistence in captivity than estimations based solely on mean time to death. Highland and mid-elevation species are better adapted to our captive settings, but factors such as body condition at admission, locality of origin, seasonality, and maintenance protocol, affect the studied species differently. Periodic estimations of the collection's mortality rates, coupled with necropsy analyses, are recommended to assess adaptation and to develop acceptable species-specific management practices in captivity.
... Approximately 800 species of reptiles have been identified throughout the Brazilian territory; more than 50% of these are snakes including coral snakes, which are members of the Elapidae family 1 comprising approximately 40 genera 2. Only the genera Micruroides Schmidt, 1928 (North America); Leptomicrurus Schmidt, 1937 (South America);and Micrurus Wagler, 1824 are found in the Americas 3,4 in fossorial or aquatic habitats. Coral snakes are small animals, ranging from 20cm to just over 1m in length, and have fixed venom inoculators of the proteroglyphous type. ...
INTRODUCTION:
The coral snake Micrurus surinamensis, which is widely distributed throughout Amazonia, has a neurotoxic venom. It is important to characterize the biological and molecular properties of this venom in order to develop effective antitoxins.
METHODS:
Toxins from the venom of M. surinamensis were analyzed by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and their neurotoxic effects in vivo were evaluated.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS:
Most proteins in the venom had masses < 14kDa, low phospholipase A2 activity, and no proteolytic activity. The toxins inhibited the coagulation cascade. The venom had neurotoxic effects in mice, with a median lethal dose upon intravenous administration of 700 µg/kg. Immunogenic studies revealed abundant cross-reactivity of antielapidic serum with 14kDa toxins and limited cross-reactivity with toxins < 10kDa. These results indicate that antielapidic serum against M. surinamensis venom has weak potency (0.35mg/ml) in mice.
... A major limitation in the study of Micrurus venoms relates to their availability. Most coral snakes are stenophagous predators that specialize in ectotherms, often snakes, lizards, fishes, or invertebrates (Roze, 1983(Roze, , 1996, and thus do not feed readily in captivity. Commonly these snakes suffer from high mortality after few months. ...
The application of proteomic tools to the study of snake venoms has led to an impressive growth in the knowledge about their composition (venomics), immunogenicity (antivenomics), and toxicity (toxicovenomics). About one-third of all venomic studies have focused on elapid species, especially those of the Old World. The New World elapids, represented by coral snakes, have been less studied. In recent years, however, a number of venomic studies on Micrurus species from North, Central, and South America have been conducted. An overview of these studies is presented, highlighting the emergence of some patterns and trends concerning their compositional, functional, and immunological characteristics. Results gathered to date, encompassing 18 out of the approximately 85 species of Micrurus, reveal a dichotomy of venom phenotypes regarding the relative abundance of the omnipresent phospholipases A2 (PLA2) and 'three-finger' toxins (3FTx): a group of species express a PLA2-predominant venom composition, while others display a 3FTx-predominant compositional pattern. These two divergent toxin expression phenotypes appear to be related to phylogenetic positions and geographical distributions along a North-South axis in the Americas, but further studies encompassing a higher number of species are needed to assess these hypotheses. The two contrasting phenotypes also show correlations with some toxic functionalities, complexity in the diversity of proteoforms, and immunological cross-recognition patterns. The biological significance for the emergence of a dichotomy of venom compositions within Micrurus, in some cases observed even among sympatric species that inhabit relatively small geographic areas, represents a puzzling and challenging area of research which warrants further studies.
... The Elapidae snake family has approximately 250 cataloged species. In the Americas, there is a group of more than 120 species and subspecies that are distributed into three genera, including Micruroides, Leptomicrurus and Micrurus (Roze, 1967(Roze, , 1983Roze and Bernal-Carlo, 1987;Scrocchi, 1990;Lamar, 1989, 2004 (Russel, 1983;Bolaños, 1984;Kitchens and Ven Mierop, 1987). In Brazil, M. corallinus and M. frontalis are responsible for the majority of coral snake envenomations (Bucaretchi et al., 2016), and both species inhabit highly populated areas in the central, south and southeast regions of the country. ...
... Como na maioria dos estudos sobre taxocenoses de serpentes amazônicas (e. g., Beebe, 1946;Dixon e Soini, 1986, Duellman, 1978, Zimmermann e Rodrigues, 1990, as informações sobre dieta obtidas neste estudo são escassas (Tabela 8). Portanto, uma visão geral da dieta das serpentes que ocorrem na Reserva Ducke só é possível através da inclusão de dados da literatura (Beebe, 1946;Chapman, 1986;Cunha e Nascimento, 1975, 1982a, b, 1983bCunha et al., 1985;Dixon e Soini, 1986;Duellman, 1978;Greene, 1973Greene, , 1983bHenderson, 1993;Henderson e Binder, 1980;Henderson e Nickerson, 1976a, b;Henderson et al., 1977;Lemke, 1978;Nascimento et al., 1987Nascimento et al., , 1988Nascimento et al., , 1991Pope, 1961;Roze, 1982;Sazima e Abe, 1991;Schmidt, 1953a, b;Schwartz e Henderson, 1991;Silva, 1993;Strimple, 1993;Test et al., 1966;Vanzolini, 1986;Vanzolini et al., 1980;Wehekind, 1955;Zimmermann e Rodrigues, 1990 ________________________________________________________________________ Tabela 10 -Resumo dos principais tipos de presas utilizados pelas espécies de serpentes de cada linhagem filogenética para a Reserva Ducke (este estudo) e para Santa Cecilia (Duellman, 1978). Apenas as presas principais são apresentadas; as presas ocasionais foram excluídas. ...
This study describes a tropical rainforest snake assemblage in Central Amazonia, based on resource use (microhabitat and food), time of activity, species richness and abundance, morphology, behavoir, and reproduction. The data base was obtained between 1991 and
1994 in several localities around Manaus, mostly at Reserva Ducke (RFAD), a 100 km2
“terra firme” rainforest tract, 25 km north of Manaus, State of Amazonas, northern Brazil. The climate in this region is caracterized by 2100 mm of anual rainfall, with a dry season extending from July to September and a rainy one from November to May, temperature ranged between 18 and 37oC, and mean humidity about 85%.
The main method used was visual search along forest trails. Part of this search was made regularly (about 90-100 man-hours each month, during 18 months) and considered “time constrained search”; this method resulted in 274 snake findings and provided capture rates. The remaining findings (N = 234) were considered occasional and included those by others (N = 98). Most sampling was made at night. Almost all snakes were
marked by ventral scale clipping. In some additional areas around Manaus, visual searches and pitfall traps were used, resulting in 177 snake findings. Only a few snakes were collected at Reserva Ducke.
A total of 508 snake findings, of 50 species, were made at Reserva Ducke. During time constrained search (a total of about 1600 man-hours), the rate of snake findings was 0.064 and 0.217 snakes per man-hour, during the day and at night, respectively. Although time constrained search provides comparable rates of snake findings, only 31 out of 50 species were found using this method; the remaining were found occasionally. The apparently
most abundant species at Reserva Ducke, were Xenoxybelis argenteus, Bothrops atrox, Imantodes cenchoa, and Dipsas sp. The three former species also seemed to be the most abundant in other studies in Amazonia.
Twenty nine species were found by day and 41 at night. The proportions of species found in each microhabitat was similar during the day and at night. A comparison of the patterns of habitat use found at Reserva Ducke and other localities in Amazonia indicated that “exchanges” (or sum and subtractions) of species using different microhabitats, within each major colubrid lineage, may explain most of the differences found among these studies.
Snake activity at Reserva Ducke seemed to be influenced by the amount of rainfall; activity was lower in the dry season and higher during the rainy season, probably as a response to the apparently low availabilty of certain prey during the dry season. No relationship was found between moonlight and snake activity; the number of active snakes found was similar in dark and clear nights.
The most consumed prey types by the snakes of Reserva Ducke were lizards (eaten frequently or occasionally by 60% of the species with known diet, N = 48), frogs (42%), mammals (23%), birds (23%), and snakes (19%). Nine species feed on invertebrates (six on earthworms) and only one on arthropods. These results reflect, mostly, the history of colonization of the region by different snake lineages, and are also contrary to the hypothesis of differential prey abundance as a major factor determining the patterns observed in neotropical snake assemblages (for instance, insects are very abundant at Reserva Ducke, although consumed by only one snake species).Morphological analyses were based in three measurements: body length, tail length,
and weight. An analysis of maximum length distribution within the major colubrid lineages (colubrines, South American xenodontines, and Central American xenodontines), that occur at RFAD, showed that features related to these lineages (thus, historical) are responsible for most of the general pattern observed for colubrids and for the entire assemblage. The relationship between body and tail length showed that, in general, arboreal species have longer tails than terrestrials, that have longer tails than fossorials, in agreement with the idea that there is a strong effect of habitat use on tail length in snakes. Finally, an analysis of weight-length relationships showed that, in general, arboreals tend
to be lighter than terrestrials, that tend to be lighter than aquatics, confirming the effects of habitat use in snake body form. These tendencies became more evident in the analyses where colubrids were separated in major lineages. An additional analysis on color and
color patterns confirmed the effect of defence in snake color patterns.
A cluster analysis based on data on habitat use, time of activity, diet, and size (length and weight) split the assemblage into guilds where high overlaps in form and resource use are evident; in several cases these guilds were made of closely related species, indicating the presence of constraints inherent to each lineage sampled.
Although data on reproduction is scarce for most species, there are snakes at Reserva Ducke in which births occur only during the rainy season and in others occur throughout the year. A general anaysis of the presence of juveniles in the populations sampled indicated a strong tendency to seasonal breeding by the snakes of Reserva Ducke, contradicting most speculations on the patterns of juvenile recruitment in Amazonian snakes. The seasonality in reproduction, as in activity, may be related to the probably low availability of certain prey types during the dry season.
A general analysis of the results indicate that most patterns found at Reserva Ducke may well be explained by historical factors as previously predicted by J. E. Cadle and H. W. Greene in a review of the role of history on the organization of neotropical snake assemblages. Concomitantly, a critical review of the arguments favoring the hypothesis that consider competition as a major structuring force in amazonian snake assemblages indicate that these arguments tend to be irrelevant before several evidences are found in natural assemblages, especially alterations in the reproductive success in the species thought to be competing. In conclusion, it is suggested, based on a series of arguments, that the co-occurrence os 50 snake species at Reserva Ducke may be due to the combination of the following: (1) resource abundance and/or low snake densities would allow the coexistence of a relatively large number of snake species; (2) thus, the
populations would be regulated mainly by predation and/or other biotic and abiotic factors to a level where densities were not high enough to result in resource deployment (and, perhaps, competition) (some studies on Amazonian snake assemblages converged to these speculations while others, to completely conflicting ones). Concomitantly, the patterns found in the assemblage of Reserva Ducke may be a natural result of the history of colonization of the region by the various snake lineages that constitute this assemblage.
Coralsnakes of the genus Micrurus are a diverse group of venomous snakes ranging from the southern United States to southern South America. Much uncertainty remains over the genus diversity, and understanding Micrurus systematics is of medical importance. In particular, the widespread Micrurus nigrocinctus spans from Mexico throughout Central America and into Colombia, with a number of described subspecies. This study provides new insights into the phylogenetic relationships within M. nigrocinctus by examining sequence data from a broad sampling of specimens from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Panama. The recovered phylogenetic relationships suggest that M. nigrocinctus is a species complex originating in the Pliocene and composed of at least three distinct species-level lineages. In addition, recovery of highly divergent clades supports the elevation of some currently recognized subspecies to the full species rank while others may require synonymization.
Wildlife surveys are essential to conserve the biodiversity of a given region or area. In addition, in the light of ecosystem conservation problems, these surveys allow us to quickly identify which species should be a priority for conservation policies. Almost two decades have gone by since the last commented list of the snakes of Argentina was published, a period in which numerous and significant taxonomic changes have been made at a generic and specific level, and new species have been described, in addition to the inclusion of others previously recorded only in neighboring countries. This work is intended to update the systematic status of Argentine snakes and assemble information on their feeding habits, conservation, reproduction, etymology, common names, taxonomic changes, and main symptoms reported in accidents involving several colubrids and medically important viperid snakes. For this purpose, we carried out an extensive bibliographic review about Argentina and neighbouring countries snakes. In addition, we reviewed digital databases, and included our own unpublished data from herpetological collections and field work. To determine conservation status, we used the most recent categorization of Argentine snakes and the IUCN digital database. We present novel data for 8 families and 129 snake species that inhabit the Argentine territory.
Accurate and detailed species distribution maps are fundamental for documenting and interpreting biological diversity. For snakes, an ecologically diverse group of reptiles, syntheses and detailed data on distribution patterns remain scarce. We present the first comprehensive collection of detailed, voucher-based, point-locality, range maps for all described and documented Brazilian snakes, with the major aim of mitigating the Wallacean shortfall and as a contribution towards a better understanding of this rich, threatened, and poorly studied megadiverse fauna. We recorded a total of 412 snake species in Brazil on the basis of an extensive and verified point-locality database of 163,498 entries and 75,681 unique records (available here as Online Supporting Information). Our results reveal previously undocumented patterns of distribution, sampling effort, richness, and endemism levels, resulting in a more objective view of snake diversity in the Neotropics. Apart from these achievements, we understand that the most relevant and enduring contribution of the present atlas is to stimulate researchers to publish corrections, additions, and new discoveries.
Taxonomía y sistemática
Micrurus mipartitus fue descrita originalmente como Elaphs mipartitus por Duméril, Bibron y Duméril (1854); desde su descripción han existido 6 sinonimias (ver Roze 1967, Campbell y Lamar 2004, Uetz et al. 2013). Se han registrado cinco subespecies para M. mipartitus: M. m. mipartitus (Duméril, Bibron y Duméril 1854), M. m. anomalus (Boulenger 1896), M. m. decussatus (Duméril, Bibron y Duméril 1854), M. m. popayanensis (Ayerbe, Tidwell y Tidwell 1990), M. m. rozei (Golay, Chiszar, Smith y Breukelen 1999). Micrurus mipartitus hertwigi (Werner 1897) es considerada actualmente como una subespecie de Micrurus multifasciatus (Jan 1858) (Savage 2002). Slowinski (1995) sugiere la monofilia del grupo Micrurus mipartitus (M. spurrelli, M. mipartitus, M. multifasciatus, y M. multiscutatus) basán-dose en una reducción de la base atrofiada y las terminales aristas de los lóbulos de los hemipenes. A partir de caracteres morfológicos y moleculares (dos fragmentos de gen mitocondrial: ND4 y cyt-B, y un fragmento de gen nuclear: c-mos) se ha sugerido que las especies filogenéticamente más cercanas a M. mipartitus son M. surinamensis y Leptomicrurus narducci (Slowinski 1995, Castoe et al. 2007).
Para reconocer a los diferentes organismos ya sea plantas como el capomo o el maguey y a los animales como las ranas, culebras, garzas, ardillas, les damos un nombre científico que sirve para clasificar o agrupar a los organismos en unidades que llamamos especies. Desde la última década del siglo XIX para nombrar a las especies se sigue el sistema de clasificación binomial creado por el naturalista sueco
Carlos Linneo, en donde cada nombre científico está formado por dos palabas: el nombre del Género y el nombre de la Especie y donde para hacerlo más fácil de entender, el género correspondería al nombre y la especie correspondería al apellido con el que conocemos a una persona. Por ejemplo, el nombre científico de la especie “coyote” es Canis latrans, y el de la especie “lobo” es Canis lupus y ya que
son animales muy cercanos comparten el género Canis, pero son especies diferentes por lo que cada uno tiene su propio nombre científico como especie (CONABIO, 2016). En ocasiones a algunos ejemplares se les asigna un tercer nombre que indica que este grupo corresponde a una “subespecie”, es decir, una forma o variedad de
una especie, que se caracteriza por presentar pequeñas diferencias en tamaño, color, hábitat o un rasgo morfológico.
Electronic supplementary material S1: Specimens examined, macrohabitat and prey type definitions, morphometric data, phylogenetic MANOVA results, supplementary figures, and references for electronic supplementary materials
As presently understood, the herpetofauna of Nicaragua consists of 227 species representing 120 genera and 30 families. For each of these species the following information is provided: (1) a partial synonymy, including reference, the current name, and references to the species in Nicaragua; (2) the total geographic distribution of the species; (3) a list of Nicaraguan specimens examined along with their locality data. Distribution maps were drawn only for species with precise locality data in Nicaragua. Dichotomous keys for the identification of the orders, genera and species of Nicaraguan amphibians and reptiles are provided. Subspecies were not considered. Selected species of the Nicaraguan herpetofauna are illustrated.
Ten species of coralsnakes are known from Bolivia, and the ranges of an additional four approach Bolivia's northeastern border. Ranges of several species are expanded to accommodate recently collected material. Coralsnakes with characteristics thought to be diagnostic of Micrurus tricolor do not occur in Bolivia, and this species is considered to be a junior synonym of Micrurus pyrrhocryptus. Micrurus frontifasciatus is returned to the synonymy of M. lemniscatus. Some specimens previously referred to M. frontifasciatus, are described as the new species Micrurus serranus, which is apparently restricted to dry intermontane valleys of the Andes above 1200 m. Putative subspecies of M. spixii occur in sympatry within Bolivia and differ from one another by a suite of morphological characters. Accordingly, we recognize M. spixii and M. obscurus as distinct species. Characteristics used to define M. s. princeps appear to be clinal, and this taxon is considered to be synonymous with M. obscurus. Micrurus corallinus, M. ibiboboca, and M. tschudii do not occur in Bolivia, despite earlier reports to the contrary. Claims that melanism increases with age in some species are not supported by our observations.
The known herpetofauna of Aguascalientes consists of 61 species, including 14 amphibians and 47 reptiles. Introductory sections on physiography, climate, and vegetational formations for the state are provided. Identification keys for the 61 taxa are included. Each of the 61 species is treated in an account consisting of a synonymy, statement of geographical range, remarks (including distribution in Aguascalientes, taxonomic comments, and for some species, color notes in life), and specimens examined. Literature records and/or additional records are also included for some species. A section on species of probable occurrence identifies seven species that are likely to be found in the future in the state. A section on species deleted from the Aguascalientes herpetofauna discusses species erroneously reported from the state. A gazetteer of collecting localities is also provided.
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