Pituophis lineaticollis

Pituophis lineaticollis, commonly known as the Middle American gopher snake or the cincuate bull snake, is a species of nonvenomous snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to Guatemala and southeastern Mexico. There are two recognized subspecies.

Pituophis lineaticollis
Illustration from Günther, 1885
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Genus: Pituophis
Species:
P. lineaticollis
Binomial name
Pituophis lineaticollis
(Cope, 1861)
Synonyms[2]

Geographic range

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P. lineaticollis is found in Guatemala and in the Mexican states of Chiapas, Guerrero, Jalisco, Mexico, Michoacán, Morelos, Oaxaca, and Querétaro.[2]

Habitat

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The preferred natural habitat of P. lineaticollis is forest, at altitudes of 800–2,500 m (2,600–8,200 ft).[1]

Description

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Pituophis lineaticollis in a Mexico City zoo

The longest specimen of P. lineaticollis measured by Boulenger in 1894 had a total length of 1.5 m (4.9 ft), which included a tail 23 cm (9.1 in) long.

Reproduction

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P. lineaticollis is oviparous.[2]

Subspecies

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Two subspecies are recognized as being valid, including the nominotypical subspecies.[2]

  • Pituophis lineaticollis gibsoni Stuart, 1954
  • Pituophis lineaticollis lineaticollis (Cope, 1861)

Etymology

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The subspecific name, gibsoni, is in honor of Colvin A. Gibson (born 1918), a physician who specialized in tropical medicine.[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b Acevedo, M.; Ponce-Campos, P.; Aguayo, A.G (2013). "Pituophis lineaticollis ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2013: e.T63872A3130489. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2013-2.RLTS.T63872A3130489.en. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  2. ^ a b c d Pituophis lineaticollis at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 2020-06-06.
  3. ^ 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. (Pituophis lineaticollis gibsoni, p. 100).

Further reading

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  • Boulenger GA (1894). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume II., Containing the Conclusion of the Colubridæ Aglyphæ. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xi + 382 pp. + Plates I–XX. (Coluber lineaticollis, pp. 64–65).
  • Cope ED (1861). "Contributions to the Ophiology of Lower California, Mexico and Central America". Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia [13]: 292–306. (Arizona lineaticollis, new species, pp. 300–301).
  • Heimes P (2016). Snakes of Mexico: Herpetofauna Mexicana Vol. I. Frankfurt am Main, Germany: Chimaira. 572 pp. ISBN 9783899731002.
  • Stuart LC (1954). "Descriptions of Some New Amphibians and Reptiles from Guatemala". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 67: 159–178. (Pituophis deppei gibsoni, new subspecies, pp. 172–174).