Rhinophis dorsimaculatus Deraniyagala, 1941

Pyron, Robert Alexander, Ganesh, Sumaithangi Rajagopalan, Sayyed, Amit, Sharma, Vivek, Wallach, Van & Somaweera, Ruchira, 2016, A catalogue and systematic overview of the shield-tailed snakes (Serpentes: Uropeltidae), Zoosystema 38 (4), pp. 453-506 : 480

publication ID	https://doi.org/10.5252/z2016n4a2
publication LSID	urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:BFFD82EF-50C9-42BF-8493-DF57591EA4FF
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.4579357
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03A82A47-8306-FF9E-FF02-F927FA5779E2
treatment provided by	Felipe (2021-03-03 17:02:42, last updated by Plazi 2023-11-01 22:57:55)
scientific name	Rhinophis dorsimaculatus Deraniyagala, 1941
status

Treatment

Rhinophis dorsimaculatus Deraniyagala, 1941: 800 .

TYPE MATERIAL. — Holotype: NMSL 86 View Materials . Apparently lost, along with a potential paratype (see Gower & Wickramasinghe 2016).

TYPE LOCALITY. — Marichchukkaddi, North-Western province, Sri Lanka.

DISTRIBUTION. — This species is known from the Northern province, only from the type locality in north-western dry zone of Sri Lanka near sea level (see Deraniyagala 1941), and nearby Sannar ( Gower & Wickramasinghe 2016).

DESCRIPTION

The holotype was moderately large, total length c. 350 mm, ventrals 238, subcaudals 6, dorsal scales in 17 rows midbody (see Smith 1943). Based on a newly examined collection from the type locality, ventrals 227-250, subcaudals 6-8, maximum total length 415 mm ( Gower & Wickramasinghe 2016). Color-pattern distinctive, with a dark brown to black dorsal and ventral coloration, and a large orange vertebral stripe (5-6 scale-rows wide), interrupted posteriorly with mostly discontinuous paravertebral large black blotches.

REMARK

A specimen of Rhinophis zigzag was mislabeled as R. dorsimaculatus by Somaweera (2006; see Gower & Maduwage 2011).

References

DERANIYAGALA P. E. P. 1941. - A new fossorial snake (Rhinophis dorsimaculatus) from Ceylon. The Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society 42: 800 - 802.

GOWER D. J. & MADUWAGE K. 2011. - Two new species of Rhinophis Hemprich (Serpentes: Uropeltidae) from Sri Lanka. Zootaxa 2881: 51 - 68. https: // doi. org / 10.11646 / zootaxa. 4158.2.3

GOWER D. J. & WICKRAMASINGHE L. J. M. 2016. - Recharacterization of Rhinophis dorsimaculatus Deraniyagala, 1941 (Serpentes: Uropeltidae), including description of new material. Zootaxa 4158: 203 - 212.

SMITH M. A. 1943. - The Fauna of British India, Ceylon and Burma, Including the Whole of the Indo-Chinese Sub-Region. Reptilia and Amphibia. Vol. 3 (Serpentes). Taylor & Francis, London, 583 p.

SOMAWEERA R. 2006. - The snakes of Sri Lanka. Wildlife Heritage Trust of Sri Lanka, Colombo, 297 p.