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Antaresia perthensis (STULL, 1932)

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Higher TaxaPythonidae, Henophidia, Pythonoidea, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: Pygmy Python
G: Perth-Zwergpython 
SynonymLiasis childreni perthensis STULL 1932: 26
Liasis perthensis — MITCHELL 1965: 306
Bothrochilus perthensis — HOSER 1994
Morelia perthensis — WELCH 1994
Antaresia perthensis — KLUGE 1993
Antaresia perthensis — MCDIARMID, CAMPBELL & TOURÉ 1999: 163
Antaresia perthensis — COGGER 2000: 608
Rawlingspython perthensis — HOSER 2009
Antaresia perthensis — SCHLEIP & O’SHEA 2010
Antaresia perthensis — WALLACH et al. 2014: 45
Antaresia perthensis — ESQUERRÉ et al. 2021 
DistributionAustralia (Pilbara region, and adjacent rocky areas, Western Australia)

Type locality: Perth, WA, Australia  
Reproductionoviparous 
TypesHolotype: MCZ 24426 
DiagnosisDiagnosis: This form differs from the allied Liasis childreni childreni (Gray) of eastern and northern Australia in the smaller number of scale rows (35 instead of 39 45), in the smaller number of ventrals (250 instead of 257-287 (average 270.8) ), and the three pairs of prefrontals, as opposed to two in L. c. childreni. Description: Young female. Squamation: scale rows 31-35-21; ventrals 250; caudals 41 mostly divided; preoculars 2; postoculars 4; supralabials 12, without pits, fifth and sixth entering the eye; infralabials 15 on the right side, with 9-11 pitted, 14 on the left side, with 8-10 pitted; rostral unpitted; loreals 6 on the right side, 5 on the left; 3 azygous plates present between the two posterior pairs of prefrontals. Anal spurs present.
Dentition: mandibular teeth 20; maxillary 22; palatine 8; pterygoid 16.
Coloration: dorsum pale with dark brown spots arranged in four more or less regular longitudinal series, giving the general impression of a series of irregular crossbars; belly uniformly pale.
Total length 297 mm.; tail 30 mm. or 8.0 per cent of the total length. (Stull 1932) 
CommentSynonymy: Kaiser et al. 2013 considered the generic name Rawlingspython Hoser 2009 invalid and rejected its use instead of Antaresia.

Distribution: see Esquerré et al. 2021 for maps of both morphologically and genetically defined populations. 
EtymologyNamed after the type locality. 
References
  • Barker, Dave; Barker, Tracy 1995. The southern stars of Australia: Australia's small pythons. Vivarium 6 (4): 30-35
  • Cogger, H. G. 2014. Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, 7th ed. CSIRO Publishing, xxx + 1033 pp. - get paper here
  • Cogger, H.G. 2000. Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, 6th ed. Ralph Curtis Publishing, Sanibel Island, 808 pp.
  • Esquerré, Damien, Stephen C Donnellan, Carlos J Pavón-Vázquez, Jéssica Fenker, and J Scott Keogh. 2021. Phylogeography, Historical Demography and Systematics of the World’s Smallest Pythons (Pythonidae, Antaresia). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 161: 107181 - get paper here
  • Franz, V. 2003. Pythons of the World. Reptilia (GB) (27): 16-23 - get paper here
  • Franz, Volker 2018. Die Südpythons der Gattung Antaresia – charmante Zwerge aus Australien. Terraria-Elaphe 2018 (4): 20-27 - get paper here
  • Hoser, R. 2009. Creationism and contrived science: a review of recent python systematics papers and the resolution of issues of taxonomy and nomenclature. Australasian J. Herpetol. 2: 1-34 - get paper here
  • Hoser, Raymond T. 1994. Search for the ant-hill python Bothrochilus perthensis (Stull, 1932). Queensland Reptile and Amphibian Club 1994 (21): 9-12 - get paper here
  • Kaiser, H.; Crother, B.I.; Kelly, C.M.R.; Luiselli, L.; O’Shea, M.; Ota, H.; Passos, P.; Schleip, W.D. & Wüster, W. 2013. Best Practices: In the 21st Century, Taxonomic Decisions in Herpetology are Acceptable Only When Supported by a Body of Evidence and Published via Peer-Review. Herpetological Review 44 (1): 8-23
  • Kluge, Arnold G. 1993. Aspidites and the phylogeny of Pythonine snakes. Rec. Austral. Mus. (Supplement 19): 1-77 - get paper here
  • McDiarmid, R.W.; Campbell, J.A. & Touré,T.A. 1999. Snake species of the world. Vol. 1. [type catalogue] Herpetologists’ League, 511 pp.
  • Mitchell, F. J. 1965. Australian geckos assigned to the genus Gehyra Gray (Reptilia, Gekkonidae). Senckenbergiana Biologica 46: 287—319
  • Schleip, Wulf D & O’Shea, M. 2010. Annotated checklist of the recent and extinct pythons (Serpentes, Pythonidae), with notes on nomenclature, taxonomy, and distribution. ZooKeys 66 (2010) : 29-79 - get paper here
  • Stull, O.G. 1932. Five new subspecies of the family Boidae. Occ. Pap. Boston Soc. nat. Hist. 8: 25-29
  • Wallach, Van; Kenneth L. Williams , Jeff Boundy 2014. Snakes of the World: A Catalogue of Living and Extinct Species. [type catalogue] Taylor and Francis, CRC Press, 1237 pp.
  • Wilson, S. & Swan, G. 2010. A complete guide to reptiles of Australia, 3rd ed. Chatswood: New Holland, 558 pp.
  • Winchell, S. 2009. Pythons Australiens. Reptilia (Münster) 14 (79): 16-27 - get paper here
 
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