Eirenis rothii

Eirenis rothii, known commonly as Roth's dwarf racer, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to the Middle East.

Eirenis rothii
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Genus: Eirenis
Species:
E. rothii
Binomial name
Eirenis rothii
Jan, 1863
Synonyms[2][3]

Etymology

The specific name, rothii, is in honor of German naturalist Johannes Rudolph Roth (1814–1858).[4]

Geographic range

E. rothii is found in Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey.[3] It may also occur in Iraq.[1]

Habitat

The natural habitat of E. rothii is shrubland, at altitudes of 0–1,500 m (0–4,921 ft).[1]

Description

A small snake, E. rothii may attain a total length of 30 cm (12 in), which includes a tail 5.5 cm (2.2 in) long. The top of the head and neck are black, with three or four transverse yellow lines. The black on the neck descends to include the sides of the throat. The body is brownish yellow dorsally, and white ventrally. The dorsal scales are in 15 rows at midbody.[2]

Reproduction

E. rothii is oviparous.[3]

References
  1. Disi A, Werner Y, Tok V, Ugurtas I, Sevinç M, Hraoui-Bloquet S, Sadek R, Crochet P-A, Kaska Y, Kumlutaş Y, Avci A, Sindaco R (2008). "Eirenis rothii ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2009. Retrieved 7 December 2016.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. 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). xxi + 382 pp. + Plates I-XX. (Contia rothii, pp. 262-263).
  3. Species Eirenis rothii at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
  4. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Eirenis rothii, p. 227).

Further reading
  • Jan G (1863). "Enumerazione sistematica degli ofidi appartenenti al gruppo Coronellidae ". Archivio per la Zoologia l'Anatomia e la Fisiologia 2: 213–330. (Eirenis rothii, new species, pp. 256-257). (in Italian).
  • Jan [G] (1866). Iconographie générale des Ophidiens, Quinzième livraison [Issue 15]. [Illustrated by Ferdinando Sordelli ]. Paris: J.-B. Baillière et Fils. Index + Plates I-VI. (Eirenis rothii, Plate V, figure 1). (in French).
  • Wallach V, Williams KL, Boundy J (2014). Snakes of the World: A Catalogue of Living and Extinct Species. Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group. 1,237 pp. ISBN 978-1482208474.



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