Leptodeira
Encyclopedia
Leptodeira is a genus
of colubrid
snake
s commonly referred to as cat-eyed snakes. The genus consists of 10 species that are native to primarily Mexico
and Central America
, but range as far north as the southern tip of Texas
in United States
and as far south as Argentina
in South America
.
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...
of colubrid
Colubrid
A colubrid is a member of the snake family Colubridae. This broad classification of snakes includes about two-thirds of all snake species on earth. The earliest species of the snake family date back to the Oligocene epoch. With 304 genera and 1,938 species, Colubridae is the largest snake family...
snake
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
s commonly referred to as cat-eyed snakes. The genus consists of 10 species that are native to primarily Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
, but range as far north as the southern tip of Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
in United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and as far south as Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
in South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
.
Species
- Leptodeira annulataLeptodeira annulataLeptodeira annulata is a medium-sized, mildly venomous, colubrid snake.-Geographic range:It is found in northern South America, Margarita, and Trinidad and Tobago.-Description:...
(Linnaeus, 1758) – banded cat-eyed snake- Leptodeira annulata annulata (Linnaeus, 1758)
- Leptodeira annulata ashmeadii (HallowellEdward HallowellEdward Hallowell was an American herpetologist and physician.He studied and practiced medicine in Philadelphia. He also was a renowned herpetologist who described 55 new species of reptiles....
, 1845) - Leptodeira annulata cussiliris Duellman, 1958
- Leptodeira annulata pulchriceps Duellman, 1958
- Leptodeira annulata rhombifera GüntherAlbert C. L. G. GüntherAlbert Karl Ludwig Gotthilf Günther FRS, also Albert Charles Lewis Gotthilf Günther , was a German-born British zoologist, ichthyologist, and herpetologist....
, 1872
- Leptodeira bakeri Ruthven, 1936 – Baker's cat-eyed snake
- Leptodeira frenata (CopeEdward Drinker CopeEdward Drinker Cope was an American paleontologist and comparative anatomist, as well as a noted herpetologist and ichthyologist. Born to a wealthy Quaker family, Cope distinguished himself as a child prodigy interested in science; he published his first scientific paper at the age of nineteen...
, 1886) – rainforest cat-eyed snake- Leptodeira frenata frenata (CopeEdward Drinker CopeEdward Drinker Cope was an American paleontologist and comparative anatomist, as well as a noted herpetologist and ichthyologist. Born to a wealthy Quaker family, Cope distinguished himself as a child prodigy interested in science; he published his first scientific paper at the age of nineteen...
, 1886) - Leptodeira frenata malleisi DunnEmmett Reid DunnEmmett Reid Dunn was an American herpetologist noted for his work in Panama and for studies of salamanders in the Eastern United States. He attended Haverford College as an undergraduate and received his PhD from Harvard University. After receiving his PhD taught at Smith College...
& Stuart, 1935 - Leptodeira frenata yucatanensis (CopeEdward Drinker CopeEdward Drinker Cope was an American paleontologist and comparative anatomist, as well as a noted herpetologist and ichthyologist. Born to a wealthy Quaker family, Cope distinguished himself as a child prodigy interested in science; he published his first scientific paper at the age of nineteen...
, 1887)
- Leptodeira frenata frenata (Cope
- Leptodeira maculata (HallowellEdward HallowellEdward Hallowell was an American herpetologist and physician.He studied and practiced medicine in Philadelphia. He also was a renowned herpetologist who described 55 new species of reptiles....
, 1861) – Southwestern cat-eyed snake - Leptodeira nigrofasciata Günther, 1868 – black-banded cat-eyed snake
- Leptodeira punctata (PetersWilhelm PetersWilhelm Karl Hartwich Peters was a German naturalist and explorer.He was assistant to Johannes Peter Müller and later curator of the Berlin Zoological Museum. In September 1842 he travelled to Mozambique via Angola. He returned to Berlin with an enormous collection of natural history specimens...
, 1866) – Western cat-eyed snake - Leptodeira rubricata (CopeEdward Drinker CopeEdward Drinker Cope was an American paleontologist and comparative anatomist, as well as a noted herpetologist and ichthyologist. Born to a wealthy Quaker family, Cope distinguished himself as a child prodigy interested in science; he published his first scientific paper at the age of nineteen...
, 1893) – Costa Rican cat-eyed snake - Leptodeira septentrionalis KennicottRobert KennicottRobert Kennicott was an American naturalist.-Biography:Kennicott was born in New Orleans and grew up in "West Northfield" , Illinois, a town in the prairie north of the then nascent city of Chicago....
, 1859 – Northern cat-eyed snake- Leptodeira septentrionalis ornata (BocourtMarie Firmin BocourtMarie Firmin Bocourt was a French zoologist and artist.In zoology, Bocourt collaborated with Auguste Duméril. In 1861, he was sent to Thailand , where he explored the fauna and brought back an important collection of specimens...
, 1884) - Leptodeira septentrionalis polysticta Günther, 1895
- Leptodeira septentrionalis septentrionalis KennicottRobert KennicottRobert Kennicott was an American naturalist.-Biography:Kennicott was born in New Orleans and grew up in "West Northfield" , Illinois, a town in the prairie north of the then nascent city of Chicago....
, 1859
- Leptodeira septentrionalis ornata (Bocourt
- Leptodeira splendida (Günther, 1895) – splendid cat-eyed snake
- Leptodeira splendida bressoni Taylor, 1938
- Leptodeira splendida ephippiata H.M. SmithHobart M. SmithHobart Muir Smith, born Frederick William Stouffer , is an American herpetologist. He was born in Stanwood, Iowa, United States. He has been credited with describing several new species of North American reptiles and amphibians...
& Tanner, 1944 - Leptodeira splendida splendida (Günther, 1895)
- Leptodeira uribei Bautista & H.M. Smith, 1992