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Platyceps brevis (BOULENGER, 1895)

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Higher TaxaColubridae, Colubrinae, Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes)
SubspeciesPlatyceps brevis brevis (BOULENGER 1895)
Platyceps brevis smithii (BOULENGER 1895) 
Common NamesE: Short Racer, Somali Racer
E: Smith's Racer [smithi] 
SynonymZamenis brevis BOULENGER 1895: 13
Coluber brevis — LANZA 1983
Coluber brevis — SCHÄTTI & WILSON 1986
Coluber brevis — LARGEN & RASMUSSEN 1993
Haemorrhois brevis
Platyceps brevis — SCHÄTTI & UTIGER 2001
Platyceps brevis — SCHÄTTI & CHARVET 2003
Platyceps brevis — WALLACH et al. 2014: 564
Platyceps brevis — SPAWLS et al. 2018: 479

Platyceps brevis brevis (BOULENGER 1895)
Zamenis brevis BOULENGER 1895: 13
Zamenis tripraeocularis WERNER 1925: 57
Zamenis brevis — CALABRESI 1927: 31
Zamenis boschisi SCORTECCI 1930: 321
Coluber boschisi — PARKER 1932a: 362
Coluber brevis — PARKER 1932a: 363
Coluber brevis boschisi — LANZA 1963: 389
Coluber smithi [partim] — LANZA 1963: 393
Coluber brevis — GANS et al. 1965: 61
Haemorrhois [sic] brevis [ssp.] — WELCH 1982: 154
Eremiophis brevis — WELCH 1983: 108
Coluber [auct.] smithi [partim] — SCHÄTTI 1988: 102
Coluber [auct.] brevis brevis — SCHÄTTI in LANZA 1990: 435
Coluber brevis — LARGEN & RASMUSSEN 1993: 334
Platyceps brevis — SCHÄTTI & UTIGER 2001: 936

Platyceps brevis smithii (BOULENGER 1895)
Zamenis smithii BOULENGER 1895: 536
Zamenis smithii [sic] — BOULENGER 1896a: 216
Zamenis florulentus GEOFFROY 1827 — STERNFELD 1908: 240
Zamenis florulentus — LÖNNBERG & ANDERSON 1911: 21
Zamenis smithii [sic] — BOULENGER 1912: 331
Coluber smithi — PARKER 1932: 219
Coronella semiornata fuscorosea LOVERIDGE 1935: 8
Coluber smithi — PARKER 1936: 606
Coluber smithi — SCORTECCI 1940: 130
Coluber smithi — SCORTECCI 1943: 284
Coluber florulentus smithi — LOVERIDGE 1945: 2
Coluber florulentus [partim] — PARKER 1949: [29] 37
Coluber smithi [partim] — PARKER 1949: [6, 29] 37
Coluber smithi — BATTERSBY 1954: 246
Coluber smithi [partim] — LANZA 1963: 393
Coluber taylori — LANZA 1963: 393
Coluber florulentis [sic] smithi — SPAWLS 1978: 4
Haemorrhois [sic] florulentus smithi — WELCH 1982: 154
Coluber smithi — SCHÄTTI & WILSON 1986
Coluber taylori —SCHÄTTI & WILSON 1986
Coluber brevis smithi — LANZA 1988
Coluber [auct.] smithi [partim] — SCHÄTTI 1988: 102
Coluber smithi — BROADLEY & SCHÄTTI 1997
Platyceps brevis smithi — SCHÄTTI & CHARVET 2003
Platyceps smithi — WALLACH et al. 2014: 567
Platyceps smithi — SPAWLS et al. 2023 
DistributionSomalia, E Ethiopia, Republic of South Sudan (RSS)

Type locality: “Ogaden”

smithii: S Kenya, Tanzania, S Somalia, S Ethiopia (fide LANZA 1988); Type locality: upper Shebele River.  
Reproductionoviparous 
TypesHolotype: MSNG 28848
Holotype: NMW 23435 [tripraeocularis]
Holotype: MCZ 40555 [fuscorosea]
Holotype: MSNM (Milano) [boschisi]
Holotype: MSNG 28848, collected by V. Bottego between 16 October and 12 December 1892 [smithii] 
Diagnosis 
CommentSynonymy after SCHÄTTI & CHARVET 2003.

smithi: Largen (1997) mentioned Coluber taylori PARKER 1949 and Zamenis smithii - Boulenger 1896. C. smithi has sometimes been considered a subspecies of C. florulentus and C. brevis. This is the only (sub) species of Coluber south of the equator (fide BROADLEY & SCHÄTTI 1997). Not listed for Tanzania by BROADLEY & HOWELL 1991. 
EtymologyNamed after Latin “brevis, -e” = short. 
References
  • Boulenger, G. A. 1896. A list of the reptiles and batrachians collected by Dr. Ragazzi in Shoa and Eritrea. Annali Mus. civ. Stor. nat. Genova, Giacomo Doria, (2) 16: 545-554 - get paper here
  • Boulenger, G.A. 1895. An account of the reptiles and batrachians collected by Dr. A. Donaldson Smith in western Somaliland and the Galla Country. Proc. zool. Soc. London 1895: 530-540 - get paper here
  • Boulenger, G.A. 1896. A list of the reptiles and batrachians collected by the late Prince Eugenio Ruspoli in Somaliland and Gallaland in 1893. Annali Mus. civ. Stor. nat. Genova, Giacomo Doria, (2) 17: 5-14 [11] - get paper here
  • Boulenger,G.A. 1895. Rettili e Batraci. in, Esplorazione del Giuba e dei suoi Affluenti compiuta dal Cap. V. Bottego durante gli Anni 1892-93 sotto gli auspicii della Società Geografica Italiana. Annali Mus. civ. Stor. nat. Giacomo Doria (2) 15: 9-18 - get paper here
  • Broadley,D.G. & Schätti,B. 2000. A new species of Coluber from northern Namibia (Reptilia: Serpentes). Madoqua 19 (2): 171-174 [1997] - get paper here
  • Cunningham, Peter L. and Andrew Cunningham 2005. First record of Coluber smithi (Boulenger, 1895) from Tanzania. Herpetozoa 18 (1-2):91-92. - get paper here
  • Gemel, R.; G. Gassner & S. Schweiger 2019. Katalog der Typen der Herpetologischen Sammlung des Naturhistorischen Museums Wien – 2018. Ann. Naturhist. Mus. Wien, B 121: 33–248
  • Kirchhof S, Wasonga V, Mazuch T, Spawls S, Malonza KP. 2023. An annotated checklist of the herpetofauna of the Sibiloi National Park in northern Kenya based on field surveys. Amphibian & Reptile Conservation 17(1/2) [General Section]: 1–18 (e324) - get paper here
  • Lanza, B. 1963. Il genere Coluber in Somalia e descrizione di una nuova specie. Atti Soc. ital. Sci. Nat. Milano 102: 379-396 - get paper here
  • Lanza, B. 1983. A list of the Somali amphibians and reptiles. MONITORE ZOOLOGICO ITALIANO, new Ser., SUPPL. 18 (8): 193-247 - get paper here
  • Lanza, B. 1990. Amphibians and reptiles of the Somali Democratic Republic: check list and biogeography. Biogeographia, 14: 407-465 [1988] - get paper here
  • Largen, M.J.; Spawls, S. 2010. Amphibians and Reptiles of Ethiopia and Eritrea. Edition Chimaira, Frankfurt, 694 pp.
  • Largen,M.J. 1997. An annotated checklist of the amphibians and reptiles of Eritrea, with keys for their identification. Tropical Zoology 10: 63-115 - get paper here
  • Largen,M.J. & Rasmussen,J.B. 1993. Catalogue of the snakes of Ethiopia (Reptilia Serpentes), including identification keys. Tropical Zoology 6: 313-434 - get paper here
  • Loveridge, A. 1935. Scientific results of an expedition to rain forest regions in Eastern Africa. I. New reptiles and amphibians from East Africa. Bull. Mus. comp. Zool. Harvard 79: 1- 19. - get paper here
  • Parker,H.W. 1932. Scientific results of the Cambridge expedition to the east African lakes, 1930-31. 5. Reptiles and amphibians. Zool. J. Linnean Soc. 38: 213-229 - get paper here
  • Parker,H.W. 1949. The snakes of Somaliland and the Sokotra islands. Zoologische Verhandelingen 6: 1-115 - get paper here
  • Schätti B; Wilson L D 1986. Coluber Linnaeus. Holarctic racers. Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles ( 399: 1-4 - get paper here
  • Schätti, B. 1988. Systematics and phylogenetic relationships of Coluber florulentus Geoffroy, 1827 (Reptilia, Serpentes). Tropical Zoology 1 (1): 95-116 - get paper here
  • Schätti, B.; Charvet, C. 2003. Systematics of Platyceps brevis (Boulenger 1895) and related East African racers (Serpentes Colubrinae). Tropical Zoology 16 (1): 93-111 - get paper here
  • Scortecci, G. 1930. Nuove Specie di Rettili ed Anfibi del Mozambico e della Somalia Italiana. Atti Soc. ital. Sci. nat 69 (3-4): 319-321 - get paper here
  • Spawls, S. 1978. A checklist of the snakes of Kenya. East Afr. Natur. Hist. Soc. and Natl. Mus., Nairobi, J. no. 167 18 pp.
  • Spawls, S.; Howell, K.; Drewes, R.C. & Ashe, J. 2002. A field guide to the reptiles of East Africa. Academic Press, 543 pp. [reviews in HR 34: 396 and Afr. J. Herp. 51; 147] - get paper here
  • Spawls, Stephen; Tomáš Mazuch& Abubakr Mohammad 2023. Handbook of Amphibians and Reptiles of North-east Africa. Bloomsbury, 640 pp. - get paper here
  • Spawls, Steve; Kim Howell, Harald Hinkel, Michele Menegon 2018. Field Guide to East African Reptiles. Bloomsbury, 624 pp. - get paper here
 
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