Macropisthodon, Boulenger, 1893

Cadle, John E., 2011, Hemipenial morphology in the North American snake genus Phyllorhynchus (Serpentes: Colubridae), with a review of and comparisons with natricid hemipenes, Zootaxa 3092 (1), pp. 1-25 : 9

Macropisthodon

Macropisthodon rudis Boulenger (LSUMZ 33681; see Rossman & Eberle 1977: Fig. 4C ). Hemipenis bilobed, the left lobe slightly shorter than the right. Long hemipenial body proximal to the lobes bearing a long laterally-placed basal nude pocket and a rounded nude lobe adjacent to the base of the sulcus spermaticus. Sulcus spermaticus simple and sinistral, the leftward deviation beginning well proximal to the crotch. Crotch with a broad open groove extending from the tip of one lobe to the tip of the other; the groove is bordered by narrow distinct lips resembling those of the sulcus spermaticus and in addition has a narrow nude expanse on each side. The sulcus spermaticus extends out the left lobe in a more or less centrolineal position. It rounds the tip of that lobe and is continuous with the apical groove (the lips of the sulcus also appear continuous with the lips of the groove). The apical groove is broader than the sulcus groove, with the broadening occurring just after the sulcus rounds the tip of the lobe. Apart from the nude areas characterized above, the entire hemipenis is ornamented with a moderately dense array of small curved spines, which seem to be recessed in small pockets.

Figures

FIGURE 4. Everted hemipenes of natricids in sulcate view. A, Afronatrix anoscopus (CAS 230205). B, Amphiesma bitaeniatum (CAS 215037) (detail of apex shown in Fig. 5A). C, Natrix tessellata (CAS 183115) (detail of apex shown in Fig. 5D).