''Xylophis perroteti'',
commonly known as Perrotet's mountain snake and the striped narrow-headed 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 ...
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 ...
Pareidae
Pareidae is a small family of snakes found largely in southeast Asia, with an isolated subfamily endemic to southwestern India. It encompasses 42 species in four genera divided into two subfamilies: Pareinae and Xylophiinae. Both families are tho ...
. 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 the
Western Ghats of
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 ...
.
Etymology
Both the
specific name, ''perroteti'', and the common name, Perrotet's mountain snake, are in honor of French
naturalist George Samuel Perrottet
George Samuel Perrottet (23 February 1790 – 13 January 1870, Pondicherry), also known as Georges Guerrard-Samuel Perrottet, Guerrard Samuel Perrottet, Gustave Samuel Perrotet ic and Samuel Perrottet, was a botanist and horticulturalist from Pr ...
.
[Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (''Xylophis perroteti'', p. 203).]
Geographic range
''X. perroteti'' is found in the Western Ghats in the Indian states of
Kerala
Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
and
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...
.
Habitat
The natural
habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
of ''X. perroteti'' is
forest
A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...
at altitudes of .
Reproduction
''X. perroteti'' 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
Further reading
* Boulenger GA (1890). ''The Fauna of British India, Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Batrachia''. London: Secretary of State for India in Council. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xviii + 541 pp. (''Xylophis perroteti'', new combination, pp. 283–284).
* Duméril AMC, Bibron G, Duméril AHA (1854). ''Erpétologie générale ou histoire naturelle complète des reptiles. Tome septième. Première partie'' olume 7, Part 1 ''Comprenant l'histoire des serpents non venimeux.'' Paris: Roret. xvi + 780 pp. (''Platypteryx perroteti'', new species, pp. 501–503). (in French).
* Günther A (1858). ''Catalogue of Colubrine Snakes in the Collection of the British Museum''. London: Trustees of the British Museum. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xvi + 281 pp. (''Rhabdosoma microcephalum'', pp. 12–13).
* Jerdon TC (1865). "Remarks on observations contained in Dr. Günther's work on the reptiles of British India". ''Annals and Magazine of Natural History, Third Series'' 15: 416–418. (''Platypteryx perroteti'' ).
* 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. (''Xylophis perroteti'', pp. 342–343).
Pareidae
Snakes of Asia
Reptiles of India
Endemic fauna of the Western Ghats
Reptiles described in 1854
Taxa named by Gabriel Bibron
Taxa named by André Marie Constant Duméril
Taxa named by Auguste Duméril
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