''Philodryas baroni'', common name Baron's green racer,"''Philodryas baroni'' "
The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
/ref> 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 ...

of rear-fanged

venomous snake Venomous snakes are Species (biology), species of the Suborder (biology), suborder Snake, Serpentes that are capable of producing Snake venom, venom, which they use for killing prey, for defense, and to assist with digestion of their prey. The v ...

in the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

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 ever ...

. The species 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 ...

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 ...

Etymology

The Latin specific name, ''baroni'', honors Manuel Barón Morlat, who collected the first specimens. Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011).
''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''.
Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Philodryas baroni'', p. 17). Berg C (1895).
"''Dos reptiles neuvos descritos'' ".
''Anales del Museo Nacional de Buenos Aires'' 4: 189-194. (''Philodryas baroni'', new species, pp. 189-191, Figure 1). (in Latin and Spanish).

Description

''P. baroni'' can reach a total length (including tail) of about ."''Philodryas baroni'' "

/ref> The males are smaller than the females. The length of the tail is about 30% of the total body length. This species is the longest known in the genus ''Philodryas''. The head is small and elongated, with an extension of the rostral scale, forming a small flexible nasal protuberance more developed in males. The coloration of the body is rather variable.
. Usually it is green, but there are found specimens tending to blue or brown. The pattern can be uniform or with black longitudinal stripes on the back and on the sides, on the anterior third of the body. The ventral area under the black lateral lines can be white or yellowish-white, sometimes with shades of green or blue.

Behavior

''P. baroni'' is a strictly arboreal snake, with an intense activity during the day. It is generally non-aggressive. If it is frightened, it emits a foul-smelling substance from the cloaca.

Diet

''P. baroni'' feeds on small rodents, small lizards, birds, and amphibians.

Venom

''P. baroni'' is

opisthoglyphous A snake skeleton consists primarily of the skull, vertebrae, and ribs, with only vestigial remnants of the limbs. Skull The skull of a snake is a very complex structure, with numerous joints to allow the snake to swallow prey far larger than it ...

, i.e., equipped with rear fangs. It is venomous and should be treated with caution. A recent characterization of the venom of this species has shown that it has proteolytic activity, being able to inhibit platelet aggregation induced by collagen and thrombin formation. An intradermal injection in mice results in hemorrhage. When injected by the intramuscular route, it induces local effects such as hemorrhage, myonecrosis, edema and leukocyte infiltration, with a minimum hemorrhagic dose of 13.9 μg. Therefore, ''P. baroni'' must be considered dangerous to the human.

Geographic range

''P. baroni'' can be found in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

, and

Paraguay Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...

Habitat

''P. baroni'' lives in forests and savannah woodlands.

Reproduction

''P. baroni'' is

oviparous Oviparous animals are animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive method of most fish, amphibians, most reptiles, and all pterosaurs, dinosaurs (including birds), and ...

References

External links

BiolibAnimal DiversityITIS
*