''Uropeltis arcticeps'',
commonly known as the Madurai earth snake or the Tinevelly uropeltis, 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
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 ...
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 ...
Uropeltidae
The Uropeltidae, also known Common name, commonly as the shieldtails or the shield-tailed snakes, are a Family (biology), family of primitive, nonvenomous, burrowing snakes native to peninsular India and Sri Lanka. The name is derived from the Gr ...
. 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 ...
to
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
.
Geographic distribution
''U. arcticeps'' is found in South
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
(
Western Ghats south of Palghat; from sea level (Alleppey) to about 5,000 feet in the Travancore Hills; Tinnevelly Hills).
The
type locality of ''Silybura arcticeps'' is "Tinevelly, S India", and the type locality of ''Silybura nilgherriensis'' var. ''picta'' is "North Travancore near Peermede, on coffee estate at an elevation between 3000 and 4000 feet, S India".
References
Further reading
*
Günther A (1875). "Second Report on Collections of Indian Reptiles obtained by the British Museum". ''Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London'' 1875: 224-234. (''Silybura arcticeps'', new species, p. 229, Figure 1).
*
Beddome RH (1878). "Description of six new Species of Snakes of the Genus ''Silybura'', Family ''Uropeltidæ'', from the Peninsula of India". ''Proc. Zool. Soc. London'' 1878: 800-802.
*Beddome RH (1886). "An Account of the Earth-Snakes of the Peninsula of India and Ceylon". ''Annals and Magazine of Natural History, Fifth Series'' 17: 3-33. (''Silybura nilgherriensis'' Var. ''picta'', new variety, p. 16).
*
Mason GE (1888). "Description of a new Earth-Snake of the Genus ''Silybura'' from the Bombay Presidency, with Remarks on other little-known Uropeltidae". ''Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., Sixth Series'' 1: 184-186.
{{Taxonbar, from=Q3012389
Uropeltidae
Reptiles of India
Endemic fauna of the Western Ghats
Reptiles described in 1875
Taxa named by Albert Günther