:''Common names: Cross-banded mountain rattlesnake
[Campbell JA, Lamar WW. 2004. The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere. Comstock Publishing Associates, Ithaca and London. 870 pp. 1500 plates. .]''
''Crotalus transversus'', or the Cross-banded Mountain Rattlesnake, is a
venomous pit viper
The Crotalinae, commonly known as pit vipers,Mehrtens JM (1987). ''Living Snakes of the World in Color''. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. . crotaline snakes (from grc, κρόταλον ''krotalon'' castanet), or pit adders, are a subfa ...
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 ...
found in central
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
, known from less than 20 specimens.
No
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 ...
are currently recognized.
Description
Adult females grow to a maximum recorded length of . The length of the tail represents 10.5% of total body length in males and 7.1-7.9% in females.
Geographic range
It is found in central
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
in the
Sierra Ajusco and the Sierra de Monte Alto of the Transverse Volcanic Cordillera in the states of
México and
Morelos
Morelos (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Morelos ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Morelos), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 36 municipalities and its capital city is Cuer ...
at elevations exceeding in temperate boreal forests. The
type locality given is "about 55 km. SW México (city), near Tres Marías (Tres Cumbres), Morelos
exico elevation about 10,000 ft." (3,000 m)
Conservation status
This species is classified as Least Concern on the
IUCN Red List
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 biol ...
of Threatened Species.
The population trend was stable when assessed in 2007.
References
Further reading
*
Taylor, E.H. 1944. Two New Species of Crotalid Snakes from Mexico. Bull. Chicago Acad. Sci. 30 (4): 47-56.
External links
*
{{Taxonbar, from=Q838600
transversus
The transverse abdominal muscle (TVA), also known as the transverse abdominis, transversalis muscle and transversus abdominis muscle, is a muscle layer of the anterior and lateral (front and side) abdominal wall which is deep to (layered below) th ...
Reptiles described in 1944