Friday, October 21, 2016

False Coral Snake, Erythrolamprus bizona (Family Dipsadidae)

Size: 1.5 meters. A tricolored snake which mimics a coral snake. Known from Trinidad on the basis of a single, now lost, specimen. Rostral visible from above; nasal divided; one preocular, loreal small and single; two postoculars; seven upper labials; nine lower labials; ventrals 178−204; cloacal plate divided; 51−62 paired subcaudals. Dorsal scales smooth and in 15 rows. It has been traditionally separated from E. aesculapii by the number of subcaudal scales; E. bizona has more than 45 subcaudals (longer tail), and E. aesculapii fewer than 45 subcaudals; but it can also be separated from E. aesculapii by the fact that the posterior border of the rostral extends beyond the front edge of the nostril; the posterior border of the rostral does not extend beyond the nasal in this species. It occurs from Nicaragua, southward through Central America to Panama and Colombia and eastward into Venezuela, and Trinidad. A fossorial, leaf litter dwelling snake that is poorly known, probably spending much of its time below ground.

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