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Ahaetulla borealis MALLIK, SRIKANTHAN, PAL, D’SOUZA, SHANKER & GANESH, 2020

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Higher TaxaColubridae, Ahaetuliinae, Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes)
Subspecies 
Common Names 
SynonymAhaetulla borealis MALLIK, SRIKANTHAN, PAL, D’SOUZA, SHANKER & GANESH 2020: 37
Dryophis nasutus — SHARMA 1976: 163 
DistributionIndia: (Northern Western Ghats, from Devimane Ghats in Karnataka to Matheran in Maharashtra)

Type locality: Castlerock (15.397 N, 74.342 E, 670 msl) in the Northern Western Ghats, Uttara Canara district, Karnataka.  
Reproduction 
TypesHolotype. BNHS 3590 (CESS421); adult male; Castlerock, Karnataka; Coll. Saunak P. Pal and S.R. Chandramouli, 2012.
Paratype. BNHS 3591 (CESS104); adult female; Matheran, Maharashtra; Coll. Ashok Kumar Mallik, 2010. 
DiagnosisDescription: A species of Ahaetulla having a short rostral appendage (vs. long in A. oxyrhyncha comb. nov., A. anomala, A. laudankia), characterised by possessing 6 prediastemal and 8 postdiastemal maxillary teeth (vs. 7 and 9 in A. isabellina comb. nov., 6 and 11 in A. farnsworthi sp. nov., 6 and 7 in A. malabarica sp. nov. and 7 and 7 in A. oxyrhyncha comb. nov.); usually green coloured body in both sexes (vs. usually grey-brown in A. sahyadrensis nom. nov., adult females brownish in A. anomala, A. dispar and A. perroteti) (Fig. 19, Table 2, Mallik et al. 2020).

Colour in life. Dorsum uniform olive green to light green; scales bordered with brown; rostral, infralabials, venter yellowish green to light green at mid body; yellow ventral stripe along notched ventral keels; slight discolouration in the pre-ocular; inter-scalar skin white with black and white anteriorly-converging bars, white replaced by grey skin posteriorly; eyes golden yellow with black speckles; concentration of black speckles both in the anterior and posterior ends of a horizontal pupil and a slight discolouration around the pupil; tail, subcaudals green (Mallik et al. 2020: 37).

Variations in colour morphs. Dorsum bright green with blue patches; a gradual reduction of blue patches from later, more prominent in lateral sides; scales on head sometimes with dark blue dots bordered with light blue; rostral, infralabials, venter at midbody light green to light blue; sometimes a yellow ventral stripe along notched ventral keels; inter-scalar skin white with black and white anteriorly-converging bars; eye yellow to orange with light brown marbled patterns; horizontal pupil with a light blue or yellow colouration around the pupil; tail, subcaudals green (Mallik et al. 2020: 39). 
CommentDistribution: See map in Mallik et al. 2020: 14 (Fig. 4). 
EtymologyLatin, adjective termed after the ‘boreal’ or northern parts of a region, referring to its distribution in the Northern Western Ghats. 
References
  • AGGARWAL, RUPESH KUMAR; RAKESH KUMAR MOHALIK & NILADRI BHUSAN KAR. 2021. AHAETULLA BOREALIS. DIET. Herpetological Review 52 (3): 656–657. - get paper here
  • MALLIK, A. K., SRIKANTHAN, A. N., PAL, S. P., D’SOUZA, P. M., SHANKER, K., & GANESH, S. R. 2020. Disentangling vines: a study of morphological crypsis and genetic divergence in vine snakes (Squamata: Colubridae: Ahaetulla) with the description of five new species from Peninsular India. Zootaxa 4874 (1): 1-62 - get paper here
 
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