Amblyodipsas polylepis
| Amblyodipsas polylepis | |
|---|---|
| |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Atractaspididae |
| Genus: | Amblyodipsas |
| Species: | A. polylepis
|
| Binomial name | |
| Amblyodipsas polylepis (Bocage, 1873)
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| Synonyms | |
Amblyodipsas polylepis, or the common purple-glossed snake, is a species of mildly venomous rear-fanged snake in the Atractaspididae family.
Geographic range
[edit]It is endemic to the eastern and northern regions of southern Africa.[2] More specifically, it is found in Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Republic of South Africa, Tanzania, coastal Kenya, and Somalia.[3]
Description
[edit]Dorsal scales smooth, without pits, arranged in 21 rows, which is more than any other species of Amblyodipsas as the specific epithet, polylepis, implies. Ventrals 163–212; anal divided; subcaudals 16–27, divided. In every other respect scalation is like Amblyodipsas unicolor.
Completely blackish brown. Total length 40 cm (15+3⁄4 in); tail 23 mm (7⁄8 in).[4]
Diet
[edit]This species has been recorded to prey upon Monopeltis luandae, as well as other genera of Amphisbaenidae such as Zygaspis.[5]
References
[edit]- Notes
- ^ The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
- ^ Schmidt, Warren. 2006. Reptiles and Amphibians of Southern Africa. Struik. Cape Town. p. 19.
- ^ The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
- ^ Boulenger, G.A. 1896. Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History), Volume III. London. pp. 245-246.
- ^ Conradie, Werner; Pinto, Pedro Vaz (2021-01-27). "(PDF) A snake with an appetite for the rare: Amblyodipsas polylepis (Bocage, 1873) feeding on the amphisbaenid Monopeltis luandae Gans, 1976". Herpetology Notes. 14: 205–207. ISSN 2071-5773. Retrieved 2024-11-01.
- Bibliography
- Bocage, J.V.B. 1873. Melanges herpétologiques. II. Sur quelques reptiles et batraciens nouveaux, rares ou peu connus d'Afrique occidentale. Journ. Acad. Sci. Lisboa 4:209-227.