''Oxybelis'' is a

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...

colubrid 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 ever ...

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 ...

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

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

, which are commonly known as vine snakes. Though similar in appearance to the

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

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 ...

of vine snakes of the genus ''

Ahaetulla ''Ahaetulla,'' commonly referred to as Asian vine snakes or Asian whip snakes, is a genus of colubrid snakes distributed throughout tropical Asia. They are considered by some scientists to be mildly venomous and are what is commonly termed as ' ...

'', they are not closely related, and are an example of

convergent evolution Convergent evolution is the independent evolution of similar features in species of different periods or epochs in time. Convergent evolution creates analogous structures that have similar form or function but were not present in the last com ...

Geographic range

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 ...

of ''Oxybelis'' are found from the southwestern

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, through

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

, to the northern countries of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

Description

Body slender and laterally compressed, tail long. Head elongated and distinct from neck. Pupil of eye round. Dorsal scales smooth or weakly keeled, with apical pits, and arranged in 15 or 17 rows at midbody. Ventrals rounded at sides, subcaudals paired (divided). Maxillary teeth 20–25, subequal, except for the 3-5 most posterior, which are slightly enlarged and grooved on the outer surface. Anterior mandibular teeth strongly enlarged.

Species

There are 11 widely recognized species in the genus ''Oxybelis''. *''

Oxybelis aeneus ''Oxybelis aeneus'', commonly known as the Mexican vine snake or brown vine snake, is a species of Colubridae, colubrid snake, which is Endemism, endemic to the Americas. Geographic range and habitat ''O. aeneus'' is found from within the Atasc ...

'' - Mexican vine snake *'' Oxybelis brevirostris'' - Cope's vine snake *''

Oxybelis fulgidus ''Oxybelis fulgidus'', commonly known as the green vine snake or the flatbread snake (not to be confused with green-colored species in the genus ''Ahaetulla'', which are also referred as "green vine snake"), is a species of long, slender, arbore ...

'' - green vine snake *'' Oxybelis inkaterra'' - Inkaterra vine snake *'' Oxybelis koehleri'' - Köhler's vine snake *'' Oxybelis microphthalmus'' - thrornscrub vine snake *'' Oxybelis potosiensis'' - Gulf Coast vine snake *'' Oxybelis rutherfordi'' - Rutherford's vine snake *'' Oxybelis transandinus'' *'' Oxybelis vittatus'' *''

Oxybelis wilsoni ''Oxybelis'' is a genus of colubrid snakes, Endemism, endemic to the Americas, which are commonly known as vine snakes. Though similar in appearance to the Asian species of vine snakes of the genus ''Ahaetulla'', they are not closely related, an ...

'' - Roatan vine snake ''

Nota bene (, or ; plural form ) is a Latin phrase meaning "note well". It is often abbreviated as NB, n.b., or with the ligature and first appeared in English writing . In Modern English, it is used, particularly in legal papers, to draw the atten ...

'' A

binomial authority In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than ''Oxybelis''.

Etymology

The specific name, ''wilsoni'', is in honor of American herpetologist Larry David Wilson.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Oxybelis wilsoni'', pp. 287-288).

References

External links