Aspidura brachyorrhos

Boie's rough-sided snake
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Subphylum:	Vertebrata
Class:	Sauropsida
Subclass:	Diapsida
Infraclass:	Lepidosauromorpha
Superorder:	Lepidosauria
Order:	Squamata
Infraorder:	Serpentes
Family:	Colubridae
Genus:	Aspidura
Species:	A. brachyorrhos
Binomial name
*Aspidura brachyorrhos* Boie.,1827

Aspidura brachyorrhos, commonly known as Boie's rough-sided snake and as ලේ මැඩිල්ලා (le medilla) in Sinhala, is a colubird species endemic to Sri Lanka. Bites from this species are known to cause mild local reaction, including a slight burning sensation and swelling.

Destribution

A small burrowing snake from midhills of central Sri Lanka. Localities recorded are Namunukula, Gampola, Weligala, Peradeniya, Gammaduwa, Dambulla and Kandy.

Description

Head indistinct from neck, body is cylindrical. Dorsally rich orange-brown, mottled, discontinuous mid-dorsal stripes distinct. 2 rows of lateral spots. Head dark brown.

Scalation

Midbody scale rows 17. Pre-oculars present. 2 Post-oculars contact with parietal. Ventrals 134-159. Subcaudals 25-39.

Ecology

Little is known. It occurs at elevations between 610-1100m. This species is known from tea plantations and vegetable gardens, and has also been dug up from riverbanks.

Reproduction

Between 2-6 measuring 8 × 28mm are produced.

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 1/28/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.