Oligodon
Encyclopedia
Oligodon, common name kukri snakes, is a genus
of snake
s native to East
and South Asia
.
Oligodon species are egg eaters and are usually under 90 centimeters (35 inches) in length; different species display widely variable patterns and colorations. They subsist mostly by scavenging
the eggs
of bird
s and reptile
s. Besides eggs, species of this genus also feeds on lizards, frogs and small rodents.
Oligodon is a rear-fanged snake genus. They have a set of enlarged teeth placed in the back of their mouths as well as functional venom glands. They are not dangerous to humans though.
Species of Oligodon are mostly nocturnal, and live on the floor of mature forests.
The common name of the genus comes from the kukri
, a distinctively shaped Nepal
ese knife, which is similar in shape to the broad, flattened, curved hind teeth of Oligodon species. These teeth are specially adapted
for the Oligodon main diet of eggs; the teeth slit open eggs as they are being swallowed by the snake, allowing for easier digestion.
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 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 native to East
East Asia
East Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...
and South Asia
South Asia
South Asia, also known as Southern Asia, is the southern region of the Asian continent, which comprises the sub-Himalayan countries and, for some authorities , also includes the adjoining countries to the west and the east...
.
Oligodon species are egg eaters and are usually under 90 centimeters (35 inches) in length; different species display widely variable patterns and colorations. They subsist mostly by scavenging
Scavenger
Scavenging is both a carnivorous and herbivorous feeding behavior in which individual scavengers search out dead animal and dead plant biomass on which to feed. The eating of carrion from the same species is referred to as cannibalism. Scavengers play an important role in the ecosystem by...
the eggs
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
of bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s and reptile
Reptile
Reptiles are members of a class of air-breathing, ectothermic vertebrates which are characterized by laying shelled eggs , and having skin covered in scales and/or scutes. They are tetrapods, either having four limbs or being descended from four-limbed ancestors...
s. Besides eggs, species of this genus also feeds on lizards, frogs and small rodents.
Oligodon is a rear-fanged snake genus. They have a set of enlarged teeth placed in the back of their mouths as well as functional venom glands. They are not dangerous to humans though.
Species of Oligodon are mostly nocturnal, and live on the floor of mature forests.
The common name of the genus comes from the kukri
Kukri
The kukri is a curved Nepalese Knife, similar to the machete, used as both a tool and as a weapon...
, a distinctively shaped Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
ese knife, which is similar in shape to the broad, flattened, curved hind teeth of Oligodon species. These teeth are specially adapted
Adaptation
An adaptation in biology is a trait with a current functional role in the life history of an organism that is maintained and evolved by means of natural selection. An adaptation refers to both the current state of being adapted and to the dynamic evolutionary process that leads to the adaptation....
for the Oligodon main diet of eggs; the teeth slit open eggs as they are being swallowed by the snake, allowing for easier digestion.
Species
A partial list of species in the genus is given below:- Oligodon albocinctusOligodon albocinctusLight-barred Kukri Snake Oligodon albocinctus is a species of snake.Distribution:Nepal, Bangladesh,India , Myanmar China -References:* Boulenger, George A...
- Oligodon arnensisOligodon arnensisCommon kukri snake or Banded kukri Oligodon arnensis is a species of nonvenomous snakefound in Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan and Nepal.-Description:The following description is from Boulenger and Smith ....
- Oligodon cyclurusOligodon cyclurusCantor's Kukri Snake Oligodon cyclurus is a species of snake found in Asia.-Distribution:India , Myanmar , Thailand , Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, China dorsolateralis: Thailand, Myanmar , India -References:...
- Oligodon dorsalisOligodon dorsalisGray's Kukri Snake or Bengalese Kukri Snake Oligodon dorsalis is a common Indian species of snake.Distribution:India , Bhutan, Bangladesh, Myanmar , Thailand.-References:...
- Oligodon taeniolatusOligodon taeniolatusStreaked Kukri Snake is a species of nonvenomous snake found in Asia. Also known as the Variegated Kukri or the Russell's Kukri.-References:...
- Oligodon venustusOligodon venustusOligodon venustus, commonly known as Jerdon's Kukri Snake, is a species of snake found in the Western Ghats of India .-References:...
- Oligodon erythrogasterOligodon erythrogasterNagarkot Kukri Snake Oligodon erythrogaster is a species of snake found in India and Nepal....
- Oligodon erythrorhachisOligodon erythrorhachisNamsang Kukri Snake Oligodon erythrorhachis is a species of snake found in India .-References:...
- Oligodon juglandiferOligodon juglandiferWalnut Kukri Snake Oligodon juglandifer is a species of snake found in NE India.-References:* Smith, M.A. 1943 The Fauna of British India, Ceylon and Burma, Including the Whole of the Indo-Chinese Sub-Region. Reptilia and Amphibia. 3 . Taylor and Francis, London. 583 pp.* Wall,F. 1909 Notes on...
- Oligodon melaneusOligodon melaneusBluebelly Kukri Snake Oligodon melaneus is a species of snake found in India.-References:* Wall,F. 1909 Notes on snakes from the neighbourhood of Darjeeling. J. Bombay nat. Hist. Soc. 19 : 337-357...
- Oligodon melanozonatusOligodon melanozonatusAbor Hills Kukri Snake Oligodon melanozonatus is a species of snake found in India and parts of China .-References:* Smith, M.A. 1943 The Fauna of British India, Ceylon and Burma, Including the Whole of the Indo-Chinese Sub-Region. Reptilia and Amphibia. 3 . Taylor and Francis, London. 583 pp.*...
- Oligodon nikhiliOligodon nikhiliNikhil's Kukri Snake Oligodon nikhili is a species of snake found in the Palni Hills of south India. The species is named after Nikhil, the son of Romulus Whitaker.-References:...
- Oligodon templetoniOligodon templetoniOligodon templetoni is a species of snake.Named in honour of Dr. R. Templeton who obtained the first known Ceylon specimen.-References:* Boulenger, George A. 1890 The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Batrachia. Taylor & Francis, London, xviii, 541 pp.* Günther,...
- Oligodon cinereusOligodon cinereusGünther's Kukri Snake or Ashy Kukri Snake Oligodon cinereus is a species of snake.-Description:Nasal divided; portion of rostral seen from above as long as its distance from tho frontal or a little shorter; suture between the internasals usually shorter than that between the prefrontals: frontal as...
- Oligodon catenataOligodon catenataAssam Kukri Snake Oligodon catenata is a species of snake.Distribution:India, Myanmar , Vietnam, Cambodia, S Chinaeberhardti: Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, China -External links:...
- Oligodon brevicaudaOligodon brevicaudaShorthead Kukri Snake Oligodon brevicauda is a species of snake found in the Western Ghats of India.-Description:Rostral in contact with and partly separating the prefrontals. No internasals ; no loreal touching the preocular; seven supralabials, 3rd and 4th touching the eye; 1 anterior temporal....
- Oligodon woodmasoniOligodon woodmasoniOligodon woodmasoni is a species of snake found in the Nicobar Islands of India. M.A. Smith reported that the holotype of this species was missing from the ZSI Kolkata collections...
- Oligodon theobaldiOligodon theobaldiTheobald's Kukri Snake Oligodon theobaldi is a species of snake found in Myanmar and India .-References:* Boulenger, George A. 1890 The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Batrachia. Taylor & Francis, London, xviii, 541 pp.* Günther, A. 1868 Sixth account of new...
- Oligodon affinisOligodon affinisThe Western Kukri is a species of snake found in the Western Ghats of India south of the Goa Gap. They are brown above with a reddish patch appearing like a bird silhouette on the head. The underside is patterned in yellow and black....
- Oligodon sublineatusOligodon sublineatusDumeril's kukri snake or Pulli Dath Ketiya is a species of nonvenomous Kukri Snakefound in Sri Lanka....