''Subsessor'' 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 ...

of snake 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 ...

Homalopsidae The Homalopsidae are a family of snakes which contains about 28 genus, genera and more than 50 species. They are commonly known as Indo-Australian water snakes, mudsnakes, or bockadams. They are also known as ''ular air'' (lit. "water snake") in ...

. The genus is

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unispec ...

, containing the sole

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 ...

''Subsessor bocourti''. The species is commonly known as Bocourt's mud snake or Bocourt's water snake and has traditionally been placed in the genus ''

Enhydris ''Enhydris'' is a genus of slightly venomous, rear-fanged, snakes in the family Homalopsidae. The genus is endemic to the tropical area of Indo-Australian region. Species The following 6 species are recognized: * ''Enhydris chanardi'' Murph ...

''.

Etymology

Both 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 ...

, ''bocourti'', and the common name, Bocourt's water snake, refer to French zoologist

Marie Firmin Bocourt Marie Firmin Bocourt (19 April 1819 – 4 February 1904) was a French zoologist and artist. As a young man, he worked as a preparateur for the zoologist Gabriel Bibron (1805–1848), later serving as a museum artist. In 1861, he was sent to Thail ...

. Beolens B, Watkins M,

Grayson M Grayson may refer to: Places Canada * Grayson, Saskatchewan * Rural Municipality of Grayson No. 184, Saskatchewan United States * Grayson, California * Grayson, Georgia ** Grayson High School * Grayson, Kentucky * Grayson, Louisiana * Gray ...

(2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Enhydris bocourti'', p. 28).

Geographic range and habitat

''S. bocourti'' is found in a wide range of stagnant fresh water habitats in

Mainland Southeast Asia Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as the Indochinese Peninsula or Indochina, is the continental portion of Southeast Asia. It lies east of the Indian subcontinent and south of Mainland China and is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the west an ...

. Records from China are questionable.

Description

A robust snake, ''S. bocourti'' can surpass in length.

Reproduction

''S. bocourti'' is a live bearing species, giving birth to, on average, 3-8 fully formed neonate snakes.

Diet

''S. bocourti'' feeds on frogs, fishes, and crustaceans.

Commercial use

Bocourt's water snake is widely caught for its

skin Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other cuticle, animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have diffe ...

and sometimes also eaten.

References

* Boulenger GA (1896). ''Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume III. Containing the Colubridæ (Opisthoglyphæ and Proteroglyphæ) ...'' London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiv + 727 pp. + Plates I-XXV. ("''Hypsirhina bocourtii'' ic, pp. 10–11). *Chan-ard, r.Tanya; Parr, John W. K.; Nabhitabhata, Jarujin (2015). ''A Field Guide to the Reptiles of Thailand''. New York: Oxford University Press. 352 pp. (''Enhydris bocourti'', p. 239). *

Jan G Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to: Acronyms * Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN * Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code * Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group * Japanese Article Numb ...

(1865). "''Enumerazione sistematica degli ofidi appartenenti al gruppo Potamophilidae'' ". ''Archivio per la Zoologia, l'Anatomia e la Fisiologia'' 3 (2): 201-265. (''Hypsirhina bocourti'', new species, pp. 258–260). (in Italian). *Murphy, John C.; Voris, Harold K. (2014). "A Checklist and Key to the Homalopsid Snakes (Reptilia, Squamata, Serpentes), with the Description of New Genera". ''Fieldiana: Life and Earth Sciences'' (8): 1-43. (''Subsessor'', new genus, p. 33; ''S. bocourti'', new combination, p. 34, Figure 50). * Smith MA (1943). ''The Fauna of British India, Ceylon and Burma, Including the Whole of the Indo-Chinese Sub-region. Reptilia and Amphibia. Vol. III.—Serpentes.'' London: Secretary of State for India. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xii + 583 pp. (''Enhydris bocourti'', new combination, pp. 388–389). Colubrids Monotypic snake genera Reptiles described in 1865 Reptiles of Southeast Asia {{colubrid-stub