Bothrops otavioi BARBO, GRAZZIOTIN, SAZIMA, MARTINS & SAWAYA, 2012
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Bothrops otavioi
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| Higher Taxa | Viperidae, Crotalinae, Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | Portuguese: Jararaca-de-Vitória |
| Synonym | Bothrops otavioi BARBO, GRAZZIOTIN, SAZIMA, MARTINS & SAWAYA 2012 Bothrops jararaca — CICCHI et al. 2007:227 (in part) Bothrops otavioi — WALLACH et al. 2014: 118 Bothrops otavioi — NOGUEIRA et al. 2019 |
| Distribution | Brazil (São Paulo) Type locality: “Trilha da Vitória’’ (23°44’28’’S, 45°01’16’’W; datum = WGS 84; Vitória Island, Ilhabela Archipelago, São Paulo, southeastern Brazil |
| Reproduction | |
| Types | Holotype: IBSP 78572 (field number CC58), male, collected 11 August 2010 by F.C. Centeno and T.H. Condez, (Figs. 2–4A). We deposited a tissue sample at the herpetological collection of MZUSP. Paratypes: Twenty specimens from the type locality: IBSP 18866–67, males; IBSP 18868, female; IBSP 18870–71, females; IBSP 18872–73, males; IBSP 18874–75, females; IBSP 18876–77, males; IBSP 18879–81, fe- males; IBSP 18882, male, and ZUEC 3551 female, collected March 1960 by A.R. Hoge (Instituto Butantan expedition); MZUSP 3949 female, MZUSP 3951 male; MZUSP 3952 female, and ZUEC 3550 male, collected 14– 28 March 1964 by the Departamento de Zoologia (DZ) expedition. |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis: The new species is similar to B. jararaca (Fig. 4A, Table 1), and is distin- guished from this latter species by the combination of characters listed below (B. jararaca in parentheses). Smaller adult size in males: range SVL 1⁄4 388–475 mm, n 1⁄4 4 (versus range SVL 1⁄4 635–1000 mm, n 1⁄4 46); few and larger scales at the intersupraocular row: range 1⁄4 three–six scales (versus range five–nine scales); lower number of ventral scales in males: 182–190 (versus 200–211); lower number of ventral scales in females: 185–192 (versus 190–218); lower number of subcaudal scales in males: 54–61 (versus 62– 72); lower number of anterior cephalic scales, generally rounded and with no or feeble keels: range 1⁄4 20–44 (versus range 27–61, generally elongate and distinctly keeled). The hemi- penis of B. otavioi sp. nov. (Fig. 5A) has few diminutive ossified spines bordering calyces and they are restricted to the basal region of the capitulum (versus many small ossified spines reaching the medial region of the capitulum, Fig. 5B); intersulcar region nude (versus intrasulcar region with small ossified spines). Bothrops otavioi sp. nov. is further distinguished from B. jararaca by the absence of diminutive ossified spines from the sulcus spermaticus to the base of the calyces. From B. alcatraz, another small, island- dwelling species, B. otavioi sp. nov., can be distinguished by its lower number of inter- supraocular scales: three–six (versus six–eight scales); higher number of ventral scales in males: 182–190 (versus 173–182); higher number of ventral scales in females: 185–192 (versus 175–186); higher number of subcaudal scales in males: 54–61 (versus 47–54); relatively longer tail in males (ratio TL/SVL 6 SD): 0.169 6 0.010 (versus 0.161 6 0.007) and in females: 0.146 6 0.016 (versus 0.138 6 0.011); relatively longer head in males (ratio HL/TR): 0.057 6 0.004 (versus 0.053 6 0.003) and females: 0.061 6 0.008 (versus 0.055 6 0.003). Bothrops otavioi sp. nov. is distinguished from B. insularis, a larger island-dwelling species of the B. jararaca group, mainly by its brownish color pattern (pale or yellowish in B. insularis), lower number of intersupraocular scales: 3–6 (versus 7–9), lower number of anterior cephalic scales: 20–44 (versus 47–64), and smaller adult size in males: SVL 1⁄4 388–475 mm (versus 393–788 mm). The new species overlaps with B. insularis in number of ventral scales: 182–190 (versus 171–188) in males, and 185–192 (versus 176–195) in females; and subcaudal scales: 54–61 (versus 55–65) in males, and 48–54 (versus 48–59) in females. Regarding haplotype genealogy, Bothrops otavioi sp. nov. is nested within the northern clade of Bothrops jararaca group sensu Grazziotin et al. (2006; Fig. 6). The new species has the most common cytb haplotype within the northern clade of B. jararaca group, sharing the same sequence with populations from Alcatrazes Island, northern Sao Paulo, and the continental coastal slope to lowlands (Fig. 6) [from BARBO et al. 2012]. |
| Comment | Conservation: one of the 30 most endangered viper species (Maritz et al. 2016). Habitat: partly arboreal (Harrington et al. 2018). Distribution: see map in Barbo et al. 2022: 149 (Fig. 1). |
| Etymology | The specific epithet otavioi honors our friend and colleague Otavio A. V. Marques, a prominent herpetologist at the Instituto Butantan, for his great contribution to the study of natural history and conservation of Brazilian snakes. We suggest the standard English name ‘‘Vito ́ria’s Lancehead’’ for the new species. |
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