Fowlea flavipunctatus (Hallowell, 1860)

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 : 255-256

Fowlea flavipunctatus (Hallowell, 1860) — Erroneous.

Yellow-Spotted Keelback

Singapore records.

Tropidonotus quincunciatus — Ģnther, 1858b: 70.— Davison, 1892: 91.

Tropidonotus piscator — Boulenger, 1893: 231.— de Rooij, 1917: 76.—Ridley, 1899: 207.

Tropidonotus piscator var. A— Flower, 1896: 879.— Flower, 1899: 660.

Natrix piscator —Sworder, 1923: 60.— de Haas, 1949: 81.

Xenochrophis piscator —K. Lim & F. Lim, 1988a: 27 (Mandai Lake Road).—K. Lim & F. Lim, 1988c: 74 (Mandai Lake Road).—K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim 1988d: 87 (Mandai).—F.L.K. Lim & Lee, 1989: 58, 115.—K. Lim, 1990a: 9 ( Singapore Zoo).—K.K.P. Lim & L.M. Chou, 1990: 54.—F.L.K. Lim, 1991: 65.—K.K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 1992: 78, 147.—L.M. Chou et al., 1994: 105.—R.C.H. Teo & Rajathurai, 1997: 384 (Upper Seletar).— Bauer, 2019: 382.

Xenochrophis flavipunctatus —K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 2002: 147.—Vogel & David, 2006: 244.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2008: 166.—D.C.J. Yeo & C.S.W. Chia, 2010.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2012: 166.— Vogel & David, 2012: 26, 47.—Wallach et al., 2014: 797.

Remarks. Fowlea flavipunctatus is part of the F. piscator complex, which has suffered from a complicated taxonomic history (Vogel & David 2012). Until recently members of Xenochrophis , both these species were newly placed into Fowlea following molecular evidence (Purkayastha et al. 2018). Fowlea flavipunctatus was considered a subspecies of F. piscator until Taylor (1965) described it as a separate species. A specimen of F. piscator [= flavipunctatus ] from Singapore, part of Hardwicke’s collection, was reported by Ģnther (1858b) and Boulenger (1893). In addition, specimens also considered F. piscator , but really are F. flavipunctatus , were seen repeatedly in the Mandai and US areas. These individuals are considered escaped individuals and progeny of specimens imported from Thailand by Singapore Zoo (Lim & Lim 1988; Teo & Rajathurai 1997). Since these reports, the species has not been recorded again. As F. flavipunctatus is only restricted to the northern part of Peninsular Malaysia (Quah & Shahrul 2018) and does not occupy the entire peninsula (Vogel & David 2012) as previously thought, we exclude F. flavipunctatus from Singapore’s herpetofauna checklist.

LKCNHM & NHMUK Museum specimens. Singapore (no locality) : BMNH 1963.974 (no date); Mandai Lake Road : ZRC.2.2401 (Dec-1988) .

Additional Singapore museum specimens. No specimens.

Family Pythonidae Fitzinger, 1826 (1 species)

Genus Python Daudin, 1803 (1 species)