''Telescopus hoogstraali'',
common name
In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often contrast ...
s of which include Hoogstraal's cat snake and the Sinai cat snake,
is an
endangered species of
snake in the
family 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 native to the
Middle East.
Etymology
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 ...
, ''hoogstraali'', is in honor of
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, pe ...
entomologist
Entomology () is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term "insect" was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arach ...
and
parasitologist Harry Hoogstraal.
[ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Telescopus hoogstraali'', p. 126).]
Description
''T. hoogstraali'' has a black-coloured neck and head. Its eyes are small with vertical, cat-like pupils. The snake's underbelly is grey and is covered with black spots.
[ Amr ZS, Disi AM (2011). "Systematics, distribution and ecology of the snakes of Jordan". '' Vertebrate Zoology'' 61 (2): 179–266.]
Geographic range
''T. hoogstraali'' is found around the
Sinai
Sinai commonly refers to:
* Sinai Peninsula, Egypt
* Mount Sinai, a mountain in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt
* Biblical Mount Sinai, the site in the Bible where Moses received the Law of God
Sinai may also refer to:
* Sinai, South Dakota, a place ...
region, in
Egypt and
Israel, as well as
Jordan.
In Egypt, it is found in
Santa Catarina and Gebel Maghara of northern Sinai Peninsula, while in Israel it can be found only in
Negev Desert
The Negev or Negeb (; he, הַנֶּגֶב, hanNegév; ar, ٱلنَّقَب, an-Naqab) is a desert and semidesert region of southern Israel. The region's largest city and administrative capital is Beersheba (pop. ), in the north. At its southe ...
. It is also known from one city in Jordan,
Petra
Petra ( ar, ٱلْبَتْرَاء, Al-Batrāʾ; grc, Πέτρα, "Rock", Nabataean Aramaic, Nabataean: ), originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu or Raqēmō, is an historic and archaeological city in southern Jordan. It is adjacent to t ...
.
Habitat
''T. hoogstraali'' can be found at an elevation of in natural
habitats such as subtropical or tropical dry
shrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It m ...
, subtropical or tropical dry lowland
grassland, rocky areas, and hot
desert
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
s.
Behaviour
''T. hoogstraali'' is
terrestrial.
Reproduction
''T. hoogstraali'' 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 ...
.
[
]
Conservation status
''T. hoogstraali'' is threatened by habitat loss and distribution.
References
Further reading
*Bar, Aviad; Haimovitch, Guy; Meiri Shai (2021). ''Field Guide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Israel''. Frankfurt am Main, Germany: Edition Chimaira. 512 pp. .
* Disi AM, Modrý D, Nečas P, Rifai L (2001). ''Amphibians and Reptiles of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan: An Atlas and Field Guide''. Frankfurt am Main, Germany: Edition Chimaira. 408 pp. .
* Schmidt KP, Marx H (1956). "The Herpetology of Sinai". ''Fieldiana Zoology'' 39 (4): 21–40. (''Telescopus hoogstraali'', new species, pp. 33–35, Figures 5 & 6).
* Sindaco R, Venchi A, Grieco C (2013). ''The Reptiles of the Western Palearctic 2. Annotated checklist and distributional atlas of the snakes of Europe, North Africa, Middle East and Central Asia, with an update to the Vol. 1''. (Monographs of the ''Societas Herpetologica Italica''). Latina, Italy: Edizioni Belvedere. 544 pp. .
Telescopus
Snakes of Jordan
Reptiles of the Middle East
Reptiles described in 1956
Taxa named by Karl Patterson Schmidt
Taxa named by Hymen Marx
Taxonomy articles created by Polbot
{{Colubrinae-stub