Hypsirhynchus ater (GOSSE, 1851)
Can you confirm these amateur observations of Hypsirhynchus ater?
Hypsirhynchus ater
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| Higher Taxa | Colubridae (Dipsadinae), Alsophiini, Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | E: Jamaican Giant Racer, Jamaica Racer |
| Synonym | Natrix atra GOSSE 1851: 228 Natrix capistratus GOSSE 1851 (fide BOULENGER 1893) Alsophis ater — GARMAN 1887: 282 Dromicus ater — BOULENGER 1894: 121 Leimadophis ater — BARBOUR 1910: 300 Alsophis ater — GRANT 1940: 122 Alsophis ater — MAGLIO 1970 Alsophis ater — SCHWARTZ & HENDERSON 1991: 568 Alsophis ater — CROTHER 1999 Alsophis ater — TIPTON 2005 Ocyophis ater — ZAHER et al. 2009 Hypsirhynchus ater — HEDGES et al. 2009 Ocyophis ater — GRAZZIOTIN et al. 2012 Ocyophis ater — WALLACH et al. 2014: 481 |
| Distribution | Jamaica Type locality: Jamaica. |
| Reproduction | oviparous |
| Types | Syntypes: BMNH 1946.1.4.65 (formerly 45.8.17.6), BMNH 1946.1.5.6 ?; other specimens: USNM |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis (Ocyophis): Hemipenis (only known for O. ater) semicalyculate, semi-capitate and deeply bilobed, with few well developed enlarged lateral spines arranged in two parallel rows; large papillate calyces forming the capitula, which are positioned laterally; row of large papilla ornamenting the lobular crotch [GRAZZIOTIN et al. 2012]. Additional details (423 characters) are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. |
| Comment | Conservation: Possibly extinct. Type species: Natrix atra Gosse, 1851 is the type species of the genus Ocyophis COPE 1886 which was resurrected by Zaher et al. (2009) and GRAZZIOTIN et al. 2012. The group of species that were assigned to Ocyophis is unsupported by data in HEDGES et al. 2009 though. A search for synonym = “Ocyophis Zaher 2009” will yield those species. Synonymy: Neither Zaher et al. (2009) nor Hedges et al. (2009) had tissue or sequence data. According to GRAZZIOTIN et al. 2012, their allocation of O. ater and O. melanichnus to Hysirhynchus is unjustified. The assignment of O. ater to Hypsirhynchus is based on the absence of a loreal scale and on skull similarities taken from Maglio (1970). Whereas Maglio (1970) noted strong similarity between O. ater and Hypsirhynchus, his hypothesis of phyletic relationships (Maglio, 1970, fig. 18) places O. ater as the sister group of a lineage formed by Hypsirhynchus and Uromacer. Zaher (1999) remarked on the puzzling hemipenial morphology of O. ater (Fig. 3) and he avoided allocation for this species. Habitat: partly arboreal (Harrington et al. 2018). Abundance: Rare. This is one of the species called 'lost' and 'rediscovered' by Lindken et al. 2024. |
| Etymology | Named after its color, Latin “ater, atra, atrum” = dark or black. |
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