Atractaspis branchi

Atractaspis branchi, known commonly as Branch's stiletto snake, is a species of fossorial, venomous snake in the family Atractaspididae.[1][2] The species is endemic to West Africa.[1]

Atractaspis branchi
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Lamprophiidae
Genus: Atractaspis
Species:
A. branchi
Binomial name
Atractaspis branchi
Rödel et al., 2019


Etymology

The specific name branchi is to honor South African herpetologist William Roy (Bill) Branch, a world-leading expert on African reptiles.[3]

Description

The species A. branchi, like other species of its genus, is notable for its unusual skull, allowing it to stab sideways with a fang sticking out of the corner of its mouth.[4] A. branchi has morphological similarities to A. reticulata, but is distinguished by having 19 rows of dorsal scales at midbody.[1]

Habitat and geographic range

Atractaspis branchi lives in primary rainforest and rainforest edges in the western part of the Upper Guinea forests in Guinea and Liberia.[1]

References
  1. Rödel, Mark-Oliver; Kucharzewski, Christoph; Mahlow, Kristin; Chirio, Laurent; Pauwels, Olivier; Carlino, Piero; Sambolah, Gordon; Glos, Julian (2019). "A new stiletto snake (Lamprophiidae, Atractaspidinae, Atractaspis) from Liberia and Guinea, West Africa". Zoosystematics and Evolution. 951 (107). doi:10.3897/zse.95.31488. (Atractaspis branchi, new species).
  2. "New species of stiletto snake capable of sideways strikes discovered in West Africa". sciencedaily. 2019-03-11. Retrieved 2019-03-13.
  3. Species Atractaspis branchi at The Reptile Database . www.reptile-database.org.
  4. "SNAKE THAT CAN STAB SIDEWAYS WITH FANGS STICKING OUT CORNER OF ITS MOUTH DISCOVERED". newsweek. 2019-03-12. Retrieved 2019-03-13.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.