Review of Bolivian Dipsas (Serpentes: Colubridae), with Comments on Other South American Species

Seven species of Dipsas occur within Bolivia. On the basis of new material, we revise D. chaparensis, D. peruana, and D. variegata. We review D. i. cisticeps and consider it to be a subspecies of D. bucephala. We transfer D. boettgeri, D. latifrontalis, and D. polylepis to the synonymy of D. peruana...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Herpetological monographs 2008-01, Vol.22 (1), p.54-105
Main Authors: Harvey, Michael B., Embert, Dirk
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cream
Dipsas bucephala cisticeps
Dipsas chaparensis
Dipsas peruana
Dipsas variegata
Female animals
Hemipenes
Herpetology
Holotypes
Lung morphology
Lungs
Male animals
Reverse Sexual Dimorphism
Snakes
Specimens
Zoology
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Summary:Seven species of Dipsas occur within Bolivia. On the basis of new material, we revise D. chaparensis, D. peruana, and D. variegata. We review D. i. cisticeps and consider it to be a subspecies of D. bucephala. We transfer D. boettgeri, D. latifrontalis, and D. polylepis to the synonymy of D. peruana. We consider D. neivai and populations of D. variegata from Bolivia, Brazil, and Peru to be conspecific with Guianan and Venezuelan D. variegata. On the other hand, we recognize D. trinitatis Parker as a morphologically distinct, full species rather than a subspecies of D. variegata. We refer Leptognathus robusta Müller to the synonymy of D. oreas rather than D. variegata. Alizarin red staining reveals calcification patterns of snake hemipenes and is recommended as a modification of techniques used to prepare these organs. Characters of visceral morphology improve our understanding of dipsadine relationships. As in most snakes, male Dipsas usually have higher subcaudal counts than females. On the other hand, species of Dipsas either have reverse ventral count dimorphism or their ventral counts are not dimorphic.
ISSN:0733-1347
1938-5137
DOI:10.1655/07-023.1