''Chilabothrus schwartzi'', also known as the Crooked-Acklins boa or Crooked Aklins boa, is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

snake Snakes are elongated, Limbless vertebrate, limbless, carnivore, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other Squamata, squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping Scale (zoology), scales. Ma ...

. It is

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 elsew ...

to the southern

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...

, specifically to Crooked Island and

Acklins Acklins is an island and district of the Bahamas. It is one of a group of islands arranged along a large, shallow lagoon called the Bight of Acklins, of which the largest are Crooked Island () in the north and Acklins () in the southeast, and ...

. It was originally described as a

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

of ''Epicrates chrysogaster'' (now ''

Chilabothrus chrysogaster ''Chilabothrus chrysogaster'', commonly known as the Turks and Caicos Islands boa or the Southern Bahamas boa, is a species of snake found in the Southern Bahamas (Great Inagua, Sheep Cay) and the Turks and Caicos Islands. Local names include t ...

''), but it was elevated to full species status in 2018. In fact, molecular data suggest a closer relationship with '' Chilabothrus argentum'' than with ''Chilabothrus chrysogaster''.

Etymology

The

specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...

, ''schwartzi'', is in honor of

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

herpetologist Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians (gymnophiona)) and rept ...

Albert Schwartz.(''Epicrates chrysogaster schwartzi'', p. 239).

Description

''Chilabothrus schwartzi'' can reach at least in

snout–vent length Snout–vent length (SVL) is a morphometric measurement taken in herpetology from the tip of the snout to the most posterior opening of the cloacal slit (vent)."direct line distance from tip of snout to posterior margin of vent" It is the most c ...

. There are 1–2

loreal scale The lore (adj. loreal) is the region between the eyes and nostrils of birds, reptiles, and amphibians. Ornithology In ornithology, the lore is the region between the eye and bill on the side of a bird's head. This region is sometimes featherles ...

s (most often one), 8–10

circumorbital scales In scaled reptiles, the ocular scales are those forming the margin of the eye.Wright AH, Wright AA. 1957. ''Handbook of Snakes''. Comstock Publishing Associates (7th printing, 1985). 1105 pp. . The name originates from the term ''oculus'' which ...

, and 13

supralabial scale In reptiles, the supralabial scales, also called upper-labials, are those scales that border the mouth opening along the upper jaw. They do not include the median scaleWright AH, Wright AA. 1957. Handbook of Snakes. Comstock Publishing Associates ( ...

Ventral scales In snakes, the ventral scales or gastrosteges are the enlarged and transversely elongated scales that extend down the underside of the body from the neck to the anal scale. When counting them, the first is the anteriormost ventral scale that conta ...

are immaculate cream-colored. Dorsal coloration is grayish-silver in adults and reddish-orange in juveniles. There are frequently (but not always) elongated saddle blotches of slightly darker color than the dorsal ground color, extending nearly to the ventral scales. Postorbital stripe is absent.

Habitat and conservation

Specimens have been found actively foraging low (about high) in trees and bushes, and on the ground. As of 2020, ''Chilabothrus schwartzi'' has not been included in the

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biologi ...

. Its range likely covers two relatively large islands, but it appears to be rare, or at least restricted to specific habitats. Threats to it are unknown, but likely include persecution,

roadkill Roadkill is an animal or animals that have been struck and killed by drivers of motor vehicles on highways. Wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVC) have increasingly been the topic of academic research to understand the causes, and how it can be mi ...

s, and introduced vertebrate predators.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q21400826 schwartzi Reptiles of the Bahamas Endemic fauna of the Bahamas Reptiles described in 1975 Snakes of the Caribbean