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Achalinus Niger
''Achalinus niger'', common name black odd-scaled snake or black burrowing snake, is a snake in family Xenodermatidae that is endemic to Taiwan. Distribution and phylogeography This Taiwan endemic is widespread at elevations of asl. Genetic analyses have indicated three distinct clades, a northern one from the Xueshan Range, a southern one from the Alishan Range and southern Central Mountain Range, and Meifeng, a small but very distinct location at the middle of the Central Mountain Range. Description ''Achalinus niger'' is a small snake growing to a total length of about . The whole body is iridescent under light. Head is small, oval, and without distinct neck. Body is slender and tail is moderately short. Eyes are small, bead-like; iris Iris most often refers to: *Iris (anatomy), part of the eye *Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess * ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants * Iris (color), an ambiguous color term Iris or IRIS may also refer to: Arts and media Fiction ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xenodermatidae
Xenodermidae is a family of snakes native to East Asia, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. All species in the family Xenodermidae are small or moderately sized snakes, never more than but typically less than in total length (including tail). They are secretive, probably nocturnal, and typically inhabit moist forest habitats. They seem to be opportunistic carnivores, preying on other vertebrates. The correct spelling of the family name is Xenodermidae, not "Xenodermatidae". Taxonomy and systematics Xenodermidae have a basal position in the colubroid radiation. However, their exact position is not yet settled, e.g., that they might be the sister taxon of the rest of Colubroidea, or that their sister taxon is Acrochordidae, and that these two families together form a clade that is the sister taxon for the Colubroidea. Genera The family consists of the following 6 genera: *'' Achalinus'' *'' Fimbrios'' *'' Parafimbrios'' *'' Paraxenodermus'' *''Stoliczkia ''Stoliczkia'' is a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xenodermatinae
Colubridae (, commonly known as colubrids , from la, coluber, 'snake') is a family of snakes. With 249 genera, it is the largest snake family. The earliest species of the family date back to the Oligocene epoch. Colubrid snakes are found on every continent except Antarctica. Description While most colubrids are not venomous (or have venom that is not known to be harmful to humans) and are mostly harmless, a few groups, such as genus ''Boiga'', can produce medically significant injuries. In addition, the boomslang, the twig snakes, and the Asian genus '' Rhabdophis'' have caused human fatalities. Some colubrids are described as opisthoglyphous (often called "rear-fanged"), meaning they have elongated, grooved teeth located in the back of their upper jaws. It is likely that opisthoglyphous dentition evolved many times in the history of snakes and is an evolutionary precursor to the fangs of vipers and elapids, which are located in the front of the mouth. Classification In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Colubridae
Colubridae (, commonly known as colubrids , from la, coluber, 'snake') is a family of snakes. With 249 genera, it is the largest snake family. The earliest species of the family date back to the Oligocene epoch. Colubrid snakes are found on every continent except Antarctica. Description While most colubrids are not venomous (or have venom that is not known to be harmful to humans) and are mostly harmless, a few groups, such as genus '' Boiga'', can produce medically significant injuries. In addition, the boomslang, the twig snakes, and the Asian genus '' Rhabdophis'' have caused human fatalities. Some colubrids are described as opisthoglyphous (often called "rear-fanged"), meaning they have elongated, grooved teeth located in the back of their upper jaws. It is likely that opisthoglyphous dentition evolved many times in the history of snakes and is an evolutionary precursor to the fangs of vipers and elapids, which are located in the front of the mouth. Classification I ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsewhere. For example, the Cape sugarbird is found exclusively in southwestern South Africa and is therefore said to be ''endemic'' to that particular part of the world. An endemic species can be also be referred to as an ''endemism'' or in scientific literature as an ''endemite''. For example ''Cytisus aeolicus'' is an endemite of the Italian flora. ''Adzharia renschi'' was once believed to be an endemite of the Caucasus, but it was later discovered to be a non-indigenous species from South America belonging to a different genus. The extreme opposite of an endemic species is one with a cosmopolitan distribution, having a global or widespread range. A rare alternative term for a species that is endemic is "precinctive", which applies to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Above Sea Level
Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as '' orthometric heights''. The combination of unit of measurement and the physical quantity (height) is called " metres above mean sea level" in the metric system, while in United States customary and imperial units it would be called " feet above mean sea level". Mean sea levels are affected by climate change and other factors and change over time. For this and other reasons, recorded measurements of elevation above sea level at a reference time in history might differ from the actual elevation of a given location over sea level at a given moment. Uses Metres above sea level is the standard measurement of the elevation or altitude of: * Geographic locations such as towns, mountains and other landmarks. * The top of buildings and other structures. * Flying obje ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clade
A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, the equivalent Latin term ''cladus'' (plural ''cladi'') is often used in taxonomical literature. The common ancestor may be an individual, a population, or a species (extinct or extant). Clades are nested, one in another, as each branch in turn splits into smaller branches. These splits reflect evolutionary history as populations diverged and evolved independently. Clades are termed monophyletic (Greek: "one clan") groups. Over the last few decades, the cladistic approach has revolutionized biological classification and revealed surprising evolutionary relationships among organisms. Increasingly, taxonomists try to avoid naming taxa that are not clades; that is, taxa that are not monophyletic. Some of the relationships between org ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xueshan Range
The Xueshan Range is a mountain range in northern Taiwan. It faces the Chungyang Range on the southeast. The tallest peak of Xueshan Range is Xueshan ("Snowy Mountain"), which has a height of . Shei-Pa National Park is located around the peaks of Xueshan and Dabajianshan. Names The current name derives from the pinyin romanization of the Chinese name of the range's highest peak, Xueshan. The same name is sometimes written Hsüeh-shan or calqued as the Snow or . Under the Qing, the range was also known variously as the Middle, Western, Dodds, or List of peaks There are 54 peaks taller than among the Xueshan Range, 19 of which are numbered among the 100 Peaks of Taiwan: *Xueshan Main Peak (雪山主峰), *Xueshan Eastern Peak (雪山東峰), *Xueshan Northern Peak (雪山北峰), * Daxueshan (大雪山), *Zhongxueshan (中雪山), *Huoshishan (火石山), *Touyingshan (頭鷹山), *Zhijiayangdashan (志佳陽大山), *Dabajianshan (大霸尖山), *Xiaobajianshan ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alishan Range
The Alishan Range () is a mountain range in the central-southern region of Taiwan. It is separated by the Qishan River from the Yushan Range, the tallest range in Taiwan, to the east of the Alishan Range. The highest peak of the Alishan Range is Datashan (大塔山), which has a height of . There is a famous Taiwanese song called "Alishan de Guniang" which is about a girl in the Alishan mountains. The name Ali Shan seems to be taken from the word "Alit", which in several Taiwanese indigenous languages means "ancestor mountain". See also * Alishan National Scenic Area * Alishan Forest Railway Alishan Forest Railway () is an 86 km network of narrow gauge railways running up to and throughout the popular mountain resort of Alishan in Chiayi County, Taiwan. The railway, originally constructed for logging, has become a tourist a ... References Mountain ranges of Taiwan {{Taiwan-geo-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Central Mountain Range
The Central Mountain Range is the principal mountain range on the island of Taiwan. It runs from the north of the island to the south. Due to this separation, connecting between the west and east is not very convenient. The tallest peak of the range is Xiuguluan Mountain, . Names "Central Range" or "Central Mountain Range" is a calque of the range's Chinese name, the ''Zhōngyāng Shānmài'' or ''Shānmò''. It is also sometimes simply called the Zhongyang or in English. During the Qing Dynasty, the range was known as the , from the Wade-Giles romanization of the Chinese name ''Dàshān'', meaning "Big Mountains". Geography In a broad sense, Central Mountain Range includes its conjoint ranges such as Xueshan Range and Yushan Range; thus the tallest peak of Central Mountain Range in this sense is Yushan (Jade Mountain/Mount Morrison), , and the second tallest peak is Xueshan (Snow Mountain), . Ecology The Central Range lies within the Taiwan subtropical evergreen fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iris (anatomy)
In humans and most mammals and birds, the iris (plural: ''irides'' or ''irises'') is a thin, annular structure in the eye, responsible for controlling the diameter and size of the pupil, and thus the amount of light reaching the retina. Eye color is defined by the iris. In optical terms, the pupil is the eye's aperture, while the iris is the diaphragm. Structure The iris consists of two layers: the front pigmented fibrovascular layer known as a stroma and, beneath the stroma, pigmented epithelial cells. The stroma is connected to a sphincter muscle ( sphincter pupillae), which contracts the pupil in a circular motion, and a set of dilator muscles (dilator pupillae), which pull the iris radially to enlarge the pupil, pulling it in folds. The sphincter pupillae is the opposing muscle of the dilator pupillae. The pupil's diameter, and thus the inner border of the iris, changes size when constricting or dilating. The outer border of the iris does not change size. The constr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Xenodermidae
Xenodermidae is a family of snakes native to East Asia, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. All species in the family Xenodermidae are small or moderately sized snakes, never more than but typically less than in total length (including tail). They are secretive, probably nocturnal, and typically inhabit moist forest habitats. They seem to be opportunistic carnivores, preying on other vertebrates. The correct spelling of the family name is Xenodermidae, not "Xenodermatidae". Taxonomy and systematics Xenodermidae have a basal position in the colubroid radiation. However, their exact position is not yet settled, e.g., that they might be the sister taxon of the rest of Colubroidea, or that their sister taxon is Acrochordidae, and that these two families together form a clade that is the sister taxon for the Colubroidea. Genera The family consists of the following 6 genera: *''Achalinus'' *''Fimbrios'' *''Parafimbrios'' *''Paraxenodermus'' *''Stoliczkia'' *''Xenodermus ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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