Leioheterodon geayi
Leioheterodon geayi, commonly known as the Madagascan speckled hognose snake or the speckled hognose snake , is a species of mildly venomous snake in the family Lamprophiidae. The species is native to southwestern Madagascar.
| Leioheterodon geayi | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Lamprophiidae |
| Genus: | Leioheterodon |
| Species: | L. geayi |
| Binomial name | |
| Leioheterodon geayi Mocquard, 1905 | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
Etymology
The specific name, geayi, is in honor of French naturalist Martin François Geay (1859-1910) who collected the type specimen.[2]
Description
L. geayi can grow to a total length (including tail) of 90–140 cm (35–55 in).
It is an opisthoglyphous ("rear-fanged") snake, having a pair of enlarged teeth at the rear of each maxilla (upper jaw).[3]
Care in captivity
With the right care, the speckled hognose snake is relatively easy to care for. Because it is mildly venomous, tongs should be used when feeding. The speckled hognose snake should be housed in a vivarium or plastic tub, and should have two hideaways, one on the cool side and one on the warm side. One of the sides should be moist. It should have deep substrate for burrowing and should have good ventilation. It normally inhabits deserts; so a more arid environment should be provided. Its temperature range should be 75 °F (24 °C) at night and 90 °F (32 °C) during the day. Because it loves to burrow, its substrate should be 2–3 in (5.1–7.6 cm) of aspen wood shavings. It primarily eats mice, but it also eats birds, amphibians, and lizards, (not that it should be fed that in captivity).[4]
References
- "Leioheterodon geayi ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
- 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. (Leioheterodon geayi, p. 99).
- Boulenger GA (1893). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume I., Containing the Families ... Colubridæ ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiii + 448 pp. + Plates I-XXVIII. (Genus Lioheterodon [sic], pp. 268-269).
- http://acsnakes.co.uk/care/speckhog.htm
Further reading
- Glaw F, Vences M (1994). A Fieldguide to the Amphibians and Reptiles of Madagascar, Second Edition. Cologne, Germany: Vences & Glaw Verlag/Serpents Tale. 480 pp. ISBN 978-3929449013.
- Mocquard F (1905). "Description de deux nouvelles espèces de Reptiles ". Bulletin du Muséum national d'histoire naturelle de Paris 11: 288-290. (Lioheterodon [sic] geayi, new species, pp. 289–290). (in French).