''Xenodon merremii'', also known commonly as Wagler's snake, 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 ...

snake Snakes are elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more j ...

in the subfamily

Dipsadinae Dipsadinae is a large subfamily of colubroid snakes, sometimes referred to as a family (Dipsadidae). They are found in most of the Americas, including the West Indies, and are most diverse in South America. There are more than 700 species. Dips ...

of the

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

Colubridae. 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 else ...

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 sout ...

and is widespread in the eastern half of the continent.

Geographic range

''X. merremii'' occurs in

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

, Guyana, Suriname,

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas. ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

, Bolivia,

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 ...

Uruguay Uruguay (; ), officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay ( es, República Oriental del Uruguay), is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast; while bordering ...

, and northern

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 ...

.. www.reptile-database.org.

Etymology

The specific name, ''merremii'', is in honor of German

herpetologist Herpetology (from Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is the branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and caecilians ( gymnophiona)) and rep ...

Blasius Merrem.

Description

Adults of ''X. merremii'' are usually or less in total length (including tail). Freiberg M (1982). Its color pattern is very variable. Some "red phase" specimens are a uniform reddish tan. Other specimens are pale brown

dorsally Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...

, with broad dark-brown crossbands, which are edged with black, and are narrower or interrupted in the middle. Boulenger GA (1894). The latter color pattern resembles that of the

venomous snake Venomous snakes are species of the suborder Serpentes that are capable of producing venom, which they use for killing prey, for defense, and to assist with digestion of their prey. The venom is typically delivered by injection using hollow or g ...

Bothrops alternatus :''Common names'': yarará grande, urutu,Campbell JA, Lamar WW. 2004. ''The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere''. Comstock Publishing Associates, Ithaca and London. 870 pp. 1500 plates. . wutu,Brown JH. 1973. ''Toxicology and Pharmacolog ...

''.

Diet

''X. merremii'' preys on insects, frogs, toads, lizards, and sometimes snakes. Like other rear-fanged toad-eaters of the genera '' Heterodon'' and '' Lystrophis'', ''X. merremii'' uses its enlarged posterior maxillary teeth to puncture and deflate toads which have defensively puffed themselves up, thereby making them easier to swallow.

Defensive behavior

When threatened, ''X. merremii'' raises the anterior part of its body, inflating and spreading its neck, similar to a cobra.

Reproduction

''X. merremii'' is oviparous.

References

* Boulenger GA (1894). ''Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume II., Containing the Conclusion of the Colubridæ Aglyphæ.'' London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xi + 382 pp. + Plates I-XX. (''Xenodon merremii'', pp. 150–151). * Freiberg M (1982). ''Snakes of South America''. Hong Kong: T.F.H. Publications. 189 pp. . (''Waglerophis merremii'', pp. 113, 144 + photographs on pp. 21, 159, 162). * Wagler J (1824). ''In'': Spix J (1824). ''Serpentum Brasiliensum species novae ou histoire naturelle des espèces nouvelles de serpens, recueillies et observées pendant le voyage dans l'intérieur du Brésil dans les années 1817, 1818, 1819, 1820, exécuté par ordre de sa Majesté le Roi de Baviére''. Munich: F.S. Hübschmann. viii + 75 pp. + Plates I-XXVI. (''Ophis merremii'', new species, p. 47 + Plate XVII). (in Latin). * Wallach V, Williams KL, Boundy J (2014). ''Snakes of the World: A Catalogue of Living and Extinct Species''. Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press. xxviii + 1,209 pp. . (''Xenodon merremii'', p. 785). Colubrids Snakes of South America Reptiles of Argentina Reptiles of Bolivia Reptiles of Brazil Reptiles of French Guiana Reptiles of Guyana Reptiles of Paraguay Reptiles of Suriname Reptiles of Uruguay Reptiles of Venezuela Reptiles described in 1824 Taxa named by Johann Georg Wagler {{Colubrid-stub