Herpetoreas Platyceps

The Himalayan keelback (''Herpetoreas platyceps'') is a species of grass snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to South Asia.

Geographic range

''H. platyceps'' is known from India along the sub-Himalayan region, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan and China between 1000 and 3600 m elevation (about 3,300 to 11,800 feet).

Description

''H. platyceps'' has the following characteristics: Eye moderate; rostral just visible from above; suture between the internasals as long as that between the pre-frontals or shorter; frontal longer than its distance from the end of the snout, shorter than the parietals; loreal longer than deep ; one preocular (sometimes divided); two or three postoculars; temporals 1+1, or 1+2, or 2+2; 8 upper labials, third, fourth, and fifth entering the eye; 4 or 5 lower labials in contact with the anterior chin shields, which are much shorter than the posterior chin shields.

Dorsal scales in 19 rows, faintly or feebly keeled. 177-235 ventrals; anal divided; subcaudals 75-107, also divided.

Olive-brown above, with small black spots; frequently two black parallel lines or an elliptic marking on the nape; a light, black-edged streak on each side of the head, or a black line from eye to gape (corner of mouth); belly yellowish, with or without blackish dots; frequently a black line or series of elongate blackish spots along each side of the belly; lower surface of tail frequently mottled with blackish; throat sometimes black. In life, a coral-red band is said to run along the ends of the ventrals.

Total length 90 cm (3 feet); tail 23 cm (9 inches).Boulenger GA (1893). ''Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History), Volume I., Containing the Families...Colubridæ Aglyphæ, Part.'' London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). xiii + 448 pp. + Plates I-XXVIII. (''Tropidonotus platyceps'', p. 248).

Notes

References

Further reading

* Blyth E (1855). "Notices and descriptions of various reptiles, new or little known art 2. ''J. Asiatic Soc. Bengal, Calcutta'' 23 (3): 287-302 854
*Cardew AG (1896). "A rough key to the identification of Indian ophidia". ''J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.'' 10: 585–596.
* Hubrecht AAW (1882). "List of reptiles and amphibians brought from British India by Mr. Francis Day". ''Notes Leyden Mus., Leiden'' 4: 138–144.
*Kramer E (1977). "''Zur Schlangenfauna Nepals'' ". ''Rev. suisse Zool.'' 84 (3): 721–761. (in German).
*Malnate EV (1966). "''Amphiesma platyceps'' (Blyth) and ''Amphiesma sieboldii'' (Günther): sibling species (Reptilia: Serpentes)". ''J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.'' 63 (1): 1-17.
*Schleich HH, Kästle W (2002). ''Amphibians and Reptiles of Nepal''. Königstein: Koeltz Scientific Books. 1,200 pp.
*Shaw GE, Shebbeare EO, Barker PE (1939). "The snakes of northern Bengal and Sikkim, Part 4. The colubrine snakes". ''J. Darjeeling Nat. Hist. Soc.'' 13: 114–123.
*Shaw GE, Shebbeare EO, Barker PE (2000). ''The snakes of Sikkim and Bengal'' eprint Delhi: Asiatic Publishing House. 125 pp.
* Steindachner F (1867). "''Ueber drei neue Schlangenarten'' alamaria philippinica. ''Verh. zool.-botan. Ges. Wien'' 17: 513–516. (in German).
*Tillack F (2003). "''Über die Verbreitung und Biologie der Himalaya-Gebirgswassernatter ''Amphiesma platyceps'' (Blyth 1854) und einen Fall von ''Amphigonia retardata'' (Serpentes: Colubridae: Natricinae)'' ". ''Sauria'' 25 (1): 21–27. (in German).
* Wall F (1913). "A new snake of the genus ''Tropidonotus'' from the Eastern Himalayas. ''Tropidonotus Firthi, spec. nov.'' ". ''J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.'' 23: 166.
*Wall F (1923). "A Hand-list of the Snakes of the Indian Empire. Part 2". ''J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc.'' 29: 598–632.

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q29289117, from2=Q2717825

platyceps
Taxa named by Edward Blyth
Reptiles described in 1854
Reptiles of Nepal
Reptiles of India
Reptiles of Bangladesh
Reptiles of Pakistan
Reptiles of Bhutan