Pseudoboa neuwiedii

Pseudoboa neuwiedii
Pseudoboa neuwiedii photographed in El Limón, (Venezuela)
Pseudoboa neuwiedii in a house in El Limón, Venezuela
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Subfamily: Xenodontinae
Genus: Pseudoboa
Species: P. neuwiedii
Binomial name
Pseudoboa neuwiedii
(A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854)
Synonyms
  • Scytale neuwiedii
    A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854
  • Olisthenes euphæus Cope, 1859
  • Rhinocheilus thominoti Bocourt, 1887
  • Oxyrhopus neuwiedii — Boulenger, 1896
  • Pseudoboa robinsoni Stejneger, 1902
  • Pseudoboa neuweidii — Stejneger, 1902[1][2]

Pseudoboa neuwiedii, commonly known as the ratonel, is a species of snake endemic to northern South America.[3]

Geographic range

Pseudoboa neuwiedii is found on the mainland of South America from Colombia to The Guianas, and in Brazil along the Amazon River,[4] as well as in Grenada,[5] and Trinidad and Tobago.[3]

Etymology

The specific name, neuwiedii, is in honor of German naturalist Prince Maximilian of Wied-Neuwied.[6]

Description

Pseudoboa neuwiedii grows to a maximum total length (including tail) of 1 m (39 in).[3]

Dorsally, it is reddish brown, either uniform or with some scattered small black spots. The top of the head and neck are black or dark brown. There may or may not be a yellowish crossband or collar across the temples and occiput. Ventrally, it is yellowish.[2]

Behavior

Pseudoboa neuwiedii is a powerful constrictor.[3]

Diet

Pseudoboa neuwiedii feeds on any animal it can capture and subdue. Individuals have been reported to consume snakes as large as or larger than they themselves are.[3]

References

  1. ↑ "Pseudoboa neuwiedii ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
  2. 1 2 Boulenger, G.A. 1896. Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume III., Containing the Colubridæ (Opisthoglyphæ and Proteroglyphæ),... Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, Printers.) London. xiv + 727 pp. + Plates I.- XXV. (Oxyrhopus neuwiedii, pp. 112-113.)
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Boos, Hans E.A. (2001). The Snakes of Trinidad and Tobago. Texas A&M University Press. College Station, Texas. ISBN 1-58544-116-3.
  4. ↑ Freiberg, M. 1982. Snakes of South America. T.F.H. Publications. Hong Kong. 189 pp. (Pseudoboa neuwiedii, p. 107.)
  5. ↑ Schwartz, A., and R. Thomas. 1975. A Check-list of West Indian Amphibians and Reptiles. Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 216 pp. ("Pseudoboa neuwiedi [sic]", p. 190.)
  6. ↑ Beolens, Bo; Michael Watkins; Michael Grayson. 2011. The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Johns Hopkins University Press. Baltimore. xiii + 312 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. ("Neuwied's False Boa Pseudoboa neuwiedi [sic]", p. 189.)

Further reading


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