Spilotes sulphureus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Genus: Spilotes
Species:
S. sulphureus
Binomial name
Spilotes sulphureus
(Wagler, 1824)
Synonyms[2]
  • Natrix sulphurea
    Wagler, 1824
  • Coluber poecilostoma
    Wied-Neuwied, 1824
  • Spilotes poecilostoma
    — A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854
  • Phrynonax sulphureus
    — Boulenger, 1894
  • Paraphrynonax versicolor
    Lutz & Mello, 1920
  • Pseustes sulphureus
    — Wagler, 1824
  • Pseustes sulphureus
    — Beebe, 1946
  • Spilotes sulphureus
    — Jadin et al., 2013

Spilotes sulphureus, commonly known as the yellow-bellied hissing snake or Amazon puffing snake, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is found in South America, as well as the Caribbean island of Trinidad.[3]

Taxonomy

Originally placed in the genus Pseustes, it is now considered in the genus Spilotes.

Subspecies

Two subspecies are recognized as being valid, including the nominotypical subspecies.[2]

Nota bene: A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was original described in a genus other than Spilotes.

Description

S. sulphureus is a large snake, which can grow up to 3 metres (9.8 ft) in total length (including tail).[3] Its venom is bimodal and can directly affect both mammal and reptile prey.[4]

Diet

Adults of S. sulphureus feed on small mammals, birds and other snakes (both venomous and non-venomous), while juveniles feed on lizards, mice and rats.[3][5]

References

  1. ↑ Gutiérrez-Cárdenas, P., Rivas, G., Caicedo, J., Gagliardi, G., Gonzales, L., Nogueira, C. & Murphy, J. 2019. Spilotes sulphureus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T15183770A15183779. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T15183770A15183779.en. Accessed on 06 July 2023.
  2. 1 2 "Spilotes sulphureus ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
  3. 1 2 3 Boos, Hans E.A. (2001). The Snakes of Trinidad and Tobago. College Station, Texas: Texas A&M University Press. ISBN 1-58544-116-3.
  4. ↑ Modahl, Cassandra M.; Mrinalini, null; Frietze, Seth; Mackessy, Stephen P. (2018). "Adaptive evolution of distinct prey-specific toxin genes in rear-fanged snake venom". Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 285 (1884): 20181003. doi:10.1098/rspb.2018.1003. PMC 6111164. PMID 30068680.
  5. ↑ https://sta.uwi.edu/fst/lifesciences/sites/default/files/lifesciences/documents/ogatt/Spilotes_sulphureus%20-%20Yellow-bellied%20Puffing%20Snake.pdf

Further reading

  • Boulenger GA (1894). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume II., Containing the Conclusion of the Colubridæ Aglyphæ. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xi + 382 pp. + Plates I-XX. (Phrynonax sulphureus, p. 19).
  • Freiberg M (1982). Snakes of South America. Hong Kong: T.F.H. Publications. 189 pp. ISBN 0-87666-912-7. (Pseustes sulphureus, p. 108 + color photo, p. 151).
  • Jadin, Robert C.; Burbrink, Frank T,; Rivas, Gilson A.; Vitt, Laurie J; Barrio-Amorós, César L.; Guralnick, Robert P. (2013). "Finding arboreal snakes in an evolutionary tree: phylogenetic placement and systematic revision of the Neotropical birdsnakes". Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research 52 (3); 257–264. (Spilotes sulphureus, new combination).
  • Wagler J (1824). In Spix J (1824). Serpentum Brasiliensum species novae ou histoire naturelle des espèces nouvelles de serpens, recueillies et observées pendant le voyage dans l'intérieur du Brésil dans les années 1817, 1818, 1819, 1820, exécuté par ordre de sa Majesté le Roi de Baviére. Munich: F.S. Hübschmann. viii + 75 pp. + Plates I-XXVI. (Natrix sulphurea, new species, pp. 26–27 + Plate IX). (in Latin and French).
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