Oreocryptophis porphyraceus ( Cantor, 1839b )

Figueroa, Alex, Low, Martyn E. Y. & Lim, Kelvin K. P., 2023, Singapore’s herpetofauna: updated and annotated checklist, history, conservation, and distribution, Zootaxa 5287 (1), pp. 1-378 : 269-270

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.5287.1.1

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:78E23714-8973-4755-BC94-0A751D7D2B37

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7968276

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/88502B73-FE96-B97B-FF6B-46CE7D040FE2

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Oreocryptophis porphyraceus ( Cantor, 1839b )
status

 

Oreocryptophis porphyraceus ( Cantor, 1839b) View in CoL — Erroneous.

Red Bamboo Snake

Singapore records.

Psammophis nigrofasciatus — Cantor, 1839b: 53.

Coluber porphyraceus View in CoL — Boulenger, 1894: 34.— Flower, 1896: 882.—Ridley, 1899: 208.— Boulenger, 1912: 140.— de Rooij, 1917: 99.

Elaphe porphyracea —Sworder, 1923: 63.— Smith, 1930: 48.—Smedley, 1931e: 118.—K.K.P. Lim & L.M. Chou, 1990: 53.—K.K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 1992: 145.—L.M. Chou et al., 1994: 105.— David & Vogel, 1996: 83.—K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 2002: 146.

Elaphe porphyracea — de Haas, 1950: 549.

Elaphe porphyracea nigrofasciata — Iskandar & Colijn, 2001: 60.

Oreocryptophis porphyracea —N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2008: 169.

Oreocryptophis porphyraceus View in CoL — Das, 2010: 295.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2012: 169.—Wallach et al., 2014: 511.

Oreocryptophis porphyraceus porphyraceus —Schulz et al., 2010: 31.

Oreocryptophis porphyraceus nigrofasciatus — Messenger, 2021: 153.

Remarks. Cantor (1839b) first described O. porphyraceus as a new species (i.e., Psammophis nigrofasciatus ) with Singapore as the type locality based on specimen NHMUK 1946.1.14.69 ( Table 1 View TABLE 1 ). The type locality was changed to Assam, India once Ģnther (1864) synonymised the species with O. porphyraceus . Curiously, Cantor (1847) did not include the record in his catalogue of reptiles from the Malay Peninsula. Smith (1930) and Smedley (1931e, 1932) rejected Singapore as the locality of Cantor’s specimen, particularly because of uncertainty surrounding some of Cantor’s specimens and because O. porphyraceus only occurs in montane habitats (Smedley 1931e; Tweedie 1983). Schulz & Helfenberger (1998) suggested that a mixup in locality may have occurred if the specimen was shipped from Singapore, and Schulz (2013) stated that Cantor’s locality “appears to be highly erroneous; probably due to the confusing labels used in the collection of snakes described”.

Pope (1935) examined the holotype and believed the specimen originated from China. He therefore corrected the type locality to “eastern China ” (not Smith [1930]) as cited in Wang et al. [2019]), and recognised the populations from eastern China, Hainan, and Taiwan as O. p. nigrofasciatus (Pope 1935) . However, in their revision of O. porphyraceus, Schulz & Helfenberger (1998) indicated that O. p. nigrofasciatus was only known from the type specimen and recognised the eastern China form as O. p. vaillanti. This is supported by Wang et al. (2019) who also found evidence separating O. p. nigrofasciatus and O. p. vaillanti. Indeed, Schulz (2013) determined that Cantor’s (1839b) description matches a specimen of O. p. porphyraceus from Sikkim, India, and synonymised O. p. nigrofasciatus with O. p. porphyraceus . A second specimen of O. porphyraceus allegedly from Singapore is ROM 19175. This specimen possesses no other data aside from locality. We reviewed photographs of the specimen and find it to resemble O. p. porphyraceus . Therefore, we can only conclude that both specimens originated outside of Peninsular Malaysia as they do not match O. p. laticincta.

LKCNHM & NHMUK Museum specimens. Singapore (no locality) : BMNH 1946.1 .14.69 (no date) [holotype of Psammophis nigrofasciatus ] .

Additional Singapore museum specimens. Singapore (no locality): ROM.

Genus Ptyas Fitzinger, 1843 (1 species)

NHMUK

Natural History Museum, London

ROM

Royal Ontario Museum

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Reptilia

Order

Squamata

Family

Colubridae

Genus

Oreocryptophis

Loc

Oreocryptophis porphyraceus ( Cantor, 1839b )

Figueroa, Alex, Low, Martyn E. Y. & Lim, Kelvin K. P. 2023
2023
Loc

Oreocryptophis porphyraceus nigrofasciatus

Messenger, K. R. 2021: 153
2021
Loc

Oreocryptophis porphyraceus

Das, I. 2010: 295
2010
Loc

Elaphe porphyracea nigrofasciata

Iskandar, D. T. & Colijn, E. 2001: 60
2001
Loc

Elaphe porphyracea

Lim, K. P. & Lim, F. L. K. 2002: 146
David, P. & Vogel, G. 1996: 83
Chou L. M. & Ng, P. K. L. & Lim, K. K. P. 1994: 105
Lim, K. K. P. & Lim, F. L. K. 1992: 145
1992
Loc

Elaphe porphyracea

de Haas, C. P. J. 1950: 549
1950
Loc

Coluber porphyraceus

de Rooij, N. 1917: 99
Boulenger, G. A. 1912: 140
Flower, S. S. 1896: 882
Boulenger, G. A. 1894: 34
1894
Loc

Psammophis nigrofasciatus

Cantor, T. E. 1839: 53
1839
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