Mitophis pyrites (THOMAS, 1965)
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Higher Taxa | Leptotyphlopidae, Epictinae, Epictini, Typhlopoidea, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes) |
Subspecies | |
Common Names | E: Barahona Threadsnake, Thomas' Blind Snake |
Synonym | Leptotyphlops pyrites THOMAS 1965: 2 Leptotyphlops pyrites — THOMAS et al. 1985 Leptotyphlops pyrites — SCHWARTZ & HENDERSON 1991: 621 Leptotyphlops pyrites — MCDIARMID, CAMPBELL & TOURÉ 1999: 40 Mitophis pyrites — ADALSTEINSSON, BRANCH, TRAPE, VITT & HEDGES 2009 Mitophis pyrites — WALLACH et al. 2014: 456 Mitophis pyrites — KLEIN et al. 2021 |
Distribution | Hispaniola (SE Haiti, SW Dominican Republic). Type locality: Pedernales, Pedernales Province, Dominican Republic, Hispaniola. |
Reproduction | oviparous |
Types | Holotype: MCZ 77239. Paratypes: USNM |
Diagnosis | Diagnosis: Species of Mitophis have 14 (rarely 16) midbody scale rows, 12 midtail scale rows, 262–414 middorsal scale rows, 14–22 subcaudals, four (3–4 in M. leptepileptus) supralabials, moderate anterior supralabials, 143–205 mm maximum adult total length, a body shape of 43–94 (total length/width), a relative tail length of 3.8–5.0 %, a tail shape of 2.3–4.3, no striped pattern (except M. pyrites), a pale brown or unpigmented dorsum, and a brown or unpigmented venter (Table 2 in ADALSTEINSSON et al. 2009). They are distinguished from the other genus in this subtribe, Tetracheilostoma, by having a high number of middorsal scales (262–414 versus 170– 192), thinner body (43–94 versus 31–54), and a pale brown or unpigmented dorsum (not dark brown). The support for this group was 100% BP and 100% PP for the four-gene tree (Fig. 3) and 100% BP and 100% PP for the nine-gene tree (Fig. 4). [from ADALSTEINSSON et al. 2009]. Additional details (145 characters) are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. |
Comment | For illustrations see Thomas, 1965. Type species: Leptotyphlops pyrites THOMAS 1965 is the type species of the genus Mitophis pyrites HEDGES, ADALSTEINSSON & BRANCH 2009. |
Etymology | Named after the type locality, Pedernales, which means "flints", hence "pyrites" the Greek equivalent. The genus name is masculine and derived from the Greek nouns mitos (thread) and ophis (snake). |
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