Crisantophis nevermanni (DUNN, 1937)
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Crisantophis nevermanni
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| Higher Taxa | Colubridae (Dipsadinae), Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | E: Dunn's Road Guarder G: Nevermanns Natter |
| Synonym | Conophis nevermanni DUNN 1937: 214 Conophis nevermanni — WELLMAN 1963: 272 Conophis nevermanni — PETERS & OREJAS-MIRANDA 1970: 70 Crisantophis nevermanni — VILLA 1971 Crisantophis nevermanni — VILLA et al. 1988 Crisantophis nevermanni — SAVAGE 2002 Crisantophis nevermanni — WALLACH et al. 2014: 189 |
| Distribution | Guatemala, W Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, NW Costa Rica Type locality: Rio Poas de Aserri (a few miles south of San Jose). |
| Reproduction | oviparous |
| Types | Holotype: ANSP 22423; Dunn mentions “A female in my own collection, obtained from Prof. Manuel Valerio.” |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis (genus): This monotypic genus was long confused with Conophis, from which it differs primarily in dentition, vertebrae, hemipenes, rostral morphology, and coloration. Members of Crisantophis are generalized colubrids and have the basic colubrid complement of head shields. They may be characterized by the following combination of features: nasal divided; a loreal; one preocular; pupil round; two pairs of chin shields; dorsal scales smooth, without apical pits, in 19-19-17 rows; anal and subcaudals divided; maxillary teeth 13 to 15 plus two laterally compressed grooved fangs; a diastema; prediastemal and mandibular teeth increasing in size posteriorly; Duvernoy's gland present; hypapophyses present on posterior dorsal vertebrae. The combination of narrow light longitudinal stripes and black marks on the intersupralabial sutures immediately distinguishes them from other Costa Rican snakes (Savage 2002: 586). DIAGNOSIS (species): The adult coloration of two to four conspicuous narrow light longitudinal stripes on the dark brown ground color, the black marking along the upper margins of the supralabials, and the presence of distinct dark spots on the tips of the ventrals are the principal identifying marks that will separate Crisantophis from other Costa Rican colubrids. Juveniles are pale with three to five dark stripes, have the upper portion of the supralabials dark, and have dark smudges on each ventral tip (Savage 2002: 586). |
| Comment | Type species: Conophis nevermanni DUNN 1937: 214 is the type species of the genus Crisantophis VILLA 1971. |
| Etymology | Probably named after Wilhelm Heinrich Ferdinand Nevermann (1881-1938), a friend of Dunn's. |
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