You are here » home › advanced search › search results › Pseudelaphe flavirufa

Pseudelaphe flavirufa (COPE, 1867)

IUCN Red List - Pseudelaphe flavirufa - Least Concern, LC
iNaturalist logo

Can you confirm these amateur observations of Pseudelaphe flavirufa?

Add your own observation of
Pseudelaphe flavirufa »

Find more photos by Google images search: Google images

Higher TaxaColubridae, Colubrinae, Lampropeltini, Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes)
SubspeciesPseudelaphe flavirufa flavirufa (COPE 1866)
Pseudelaphe flavirufa matudai (SMITH 1941)
Pseudelaphe flavirufa pardalina (PETERS 1868) 
Common NamesE: Yellow-red Ratsnake, Yellow-red Rat Snake
S: Ratonera del Trópico 
SynonymColuber flavirufus COPE 1867: 319
Natrix flavirufus — COPE 1887: 71
Coluber flavirufus — BOULENGER 1894: 39
Elaphe flavirufa — AMARAL 1929: 159
Elaphe flavirufa — GAIGE 1936: 299
Elaphe flavirufa — TAYLOR 1939
Elaphe chlorosoma — TAYLOR 1939
Pseudoelaphe flavirufus — MERTENS & ROSENBERG 1943
Elaphe chlorosoma — SMITH & TAYLOR 1945: 59
Elaphe flavirufa flavirufa — TAYLOR 1950: 448
Elaphe flavirufa polysticha SMITH & WILLIAMS 1966
Elaphe flavirufa polysticha — MCLEAN et al. 1977
Elaphe flavirufa — LINER 1994
Elaphe flavirufa — SCHULZ 1996: 273
Elaphe flavirufa — CAMPBELL 1998
Elaphe flavirufa — LEE 2000: 289
Pseudelaphe [sic] flavirufus — UTIGER et al. 2002
Pantherophis flavirufa — UTIGER et al. 2002
Pseudoelaphe flavirufa — MATTISON 2007: 35
Pseudoelaphe flavirufa — PYRON & BURBRINK 2009
Pseudelaphe flavirufa — WALLACH et al. 2014: 598
Pantherophis flavirufus — HERNÁNDEZ-ORÓÑEZ et al. 2015
Pseudelaphe flavirufa — SUNYER & MARTÍNEZ-FONSECA 2023

Pseudelaphe flavirufa matudai (SMITH 1941)
Elaphe flavirufa matudai SMITH 1941
Elaphe flavirufa matudai — DOWLING 1952
Elaphe flavirufa matudai — STUART 1963 (index)
Pseudelaphe flavirufa matudai — LINER 2008: 135
Pseudelaphe flavirufa matudai — HEIMES 2016: 135

Pseudelaphe flavirufa pardalina (PETERS 1869)
Elaphis pardalinus PETERS 1869: 642
Elaphis rodriguezii BOCOURT 1887: 168
Elaphe flavirufa pardalina — DOWLING 1952: 9
Elaphe flavirufa pardalina — STUART 1963: 98
Elaphe flavirufa pardalina — PETERS & OREJAS-MIRANDA 1970: 101
Elaphe flavirufa pardalina — BAUER et al. 1995: 71
Pseudelaphe flavirufa pardalina — HEIMES 2016: 135 
DistributionMexico (Chiapas, Yucatan, Campeche, Quintana Roo, Veracruz, Puebla, Tamaulipas, San Luis Potosí, Quéretaro, Oaxaca), Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua

Type locality: Mexico: Yucatan (Cope, 1867)

pardalina: Mexico (E Chiapas); Type locality: “ohne Fundort” (unknown)

matudai: Chiapas (Mexico); Type locality: “Salo de Agua, 1,200 feet on Cerro Ovando, near Escuintla, Chiapas”. Apparently only known from the type locality (Heimes 2016: 134).  
Reproductionoviparous 
TypesHolotype: USNM 6566
Holotype: ZMB 3790 [pardalina]
Holotype: USNM 110303 [matudai] 
DiagnosisAdditional details, e.g. a detailed description or comparisons (1648 characters), are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. 
CommentType species: Coluber flavirufus COPE 1867 is the type species of the genus Pseudelaphe MERTENS & ROSENBERG 1943: 61.

Subspecies: (Pseud-) Elaphe flavirufa phaescens has been elevated to full species status.

Synonymy: Pseudelaphe flavirufa polystichus (SMITH & WILLIAMS 1966) has been synonymized with P. flavirufa (e.g. by WALLACH et al.2014).

Similar species: has been confused with Senticolis triaspis.

Phylogenetics: see Dahn et al. 2018 for a phylogeny of Lampropeltini.

Habitat: partly arboreal (Harrington et al. 2018).

Distribution: not confirmed for Querétaro although it may occur in the North of the state fide Tepos-Ramírez et al. 2023. 
EtymologyThe specific epithet is derived from the Latin words flavus, meaning "yellow" and rufus, meaning "red," in reference to the dorsal coloration (LEMOS-ESPINAL & DIXON 2013).

The genus name was derived from the Greek words elaphos, meaning "deer-like" and pseudes, meaning "false." 
References
  • Aguilar-López JL, Luría-Manzano R, Pineda E, Canseco-Márquez L 2021. Selva Zoque, Mexico: an important Mesoamerican tropical region for reptile species diversity and conservation. ZooKeys 1054: 127-153 - get paper here
  • Bocourt, M. F 1887. Le Naturaliste (2) 14: 168 - get paper here
  • BROWN, T.W. & DIOTALLEVI, F. 2019. Nur ein bisschen abhängen? – Prädation auf Höhlen bewohnende Fledermäuse (z.B. Natalus mexicanus) durch die Mexikanische Nachtnatter (Pseudelaphe flavirufa) auf Utila Island, Honduras. Sauria 41 (4): 71 - 76 - get paper here
  • Campbell, J.A. 1998. Amphibians and reptiles of northern Guatemala, the Yucatán, and Belize. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, xiii + 380 pp. - get paper here
  • Canseco-Marquez,L.; Gutierrez-Mayen,G. & Salazar-Arenas,J. 2000. New records and range extensions for amphibians and reptiles from Puebla, México. Herpetological Review 31 (4): 259-263 - get paper here
  • Casas-Andreu, G., F.R. Méndez-De la Cruz and X. Aguilar-Miguel. 2004. Anfibios y Reptiles; pp. 375–390, in A.J.M. García-Mendoza, J. Ordoñez and M. Briones-Salas (ed.). Biodiversidad de Oaxaca. Instituto de Biología, UNAM-Fondo Oaxaqueño para la Conservación de la Naturaleza-World Wildlife Fund, México, D. F.
  • Conant, R. 1965. Miscellaneous notes and comments on toads, lizards and snakes from México. American Museum Novitates 2205: 1-38 - get paper here
  • Cope, E.D. 1867. Fifth contribution lo the herpetology of tropical America. Proc. Acad. nat. Sci. Philadelphia, 18 [1866]: 317-323 - get paper here
  • Cope, E.D. 1885. Twelfth contribution to the herpetology of tropical America. Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc. 22: 167-194 [1884] - get paper here
  • Cope, E.D. 1887. Catalogue of batrachians and reptiles of Central America and México. Bull. US Natl. Mus. 32: 7-98 - get paper here
  • Cruz-Elizalde R, Ramírez-Bautista A, Pineda-López R, Mata-Silva V, DeSantis DL, García-Padilla E, Johnson JD, Rocha A, Fucsko LA, Wilson LD. 2022. The herpetofauna of Querétaro, Mexico: composition, distribution, and conservation status. Amphibian & Reptile Conservation 16(1) [General Section]: 148–192 (e308) - get paper here
  • Dahn, H. A., Strickland, J. L., Osorio, A., Colston, T. J., & Parkinson, C. L. 2018. Hidden diversity within the depauperate genera of the snake tribe Lampropeltini (Serpentes, Colubridae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution - get paper here
  • Dixon, James R. and Julio A. Lemos-Espinal 2010. Amphibians and reptiles of the state of Queretaro, Mexico. Tlalnepantla UNAM, 428 pp.
  • Dowling, H. G. 1952. A taxonomic study of the ratsnakes, genus Elaphe Fitzinger, II. The subspecies of Elaphe flavirufa (Cope). Occ. Pap. Mus. Zool. Univ. Michigan 540: 1-14. - get paper here
  • Dowling, H. G. 1952. A taxonomic study of the ratsnakes, genus Elaphe Fitzinger, IV. A checklist of the American forms. Occ. Pap. Mus. Zool. Univ. Michigan No. 541, 12 pp. - get paper here
  • Flores-Villela, O. & Canseco-Márquez, L. 2004. Nuevas especies y cambios taxonómicos para la herpetofauna de México. Acta Zoologica Mexicana (n.s.) 20 (2): 115-144 - get paper here
  • Gaige,H. 1936. Some reptiles and amphibians from Yucatan and Campeche, Mexico. Carnegie Inst. Wash. Publ., (457): 289-304.
  • González-Sánchez, V. H., J. D. Johnson, E. García-Padilla, V. Mata-Silva, D. L. DeSantis and L. D. Wilson. 2017. The Herpetofauna of the Mexican Yucatan Peninsula: composition, distribution, and conservation status. Mesoamerican Herpetology 4(2): 264–380 - get paper here
  • Guerra Centeno, Dennis; Héctor Fuentes Rousselin & David Morán Villatoro 2012. Serpientes de Guatemala: Guía para didentificación de especies. Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala, 186 pp.
  • Günther, A. C. L. G. 1885. Reptilia and Batrachia. Biologia Centrali-Américana. Taylor, & Francis, London, 326 pp. [published in parts from 1885-1902; reprint by the SSAR 1987] - get paper here
  • GUTIÉRREZ MAYÉN, MA. GUADALUPE Y JORGE SALAZAR ARENAS 2007. HERPETOFAUNA DE LOS MUNICIPIOS DE CAMOCUAUTLA, ZAPOTITLÁN DE MÉNDEZ Y HUITZILAN DE SERDÁN, DE LA SIERRA NORTE DE PUEBLA. HERPETOFAUNA DE TRES MUNICIPIOS DE LA SIERRA NORTE DE PUEBLA, pp.197-223
  • Harrington, Sean M; Jordyn M de Haan, Lindsey Shapiro, Sara Ruane 2018. Habits and characteristics of arboreal snakes worldwide: arboreality constrains body size but does not affect lineage diversification. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 125 (1): 61–71 - get paper here
  • Hedges SB, Powell R, Henderson RW, Hanson S, and Murphy JC 2019. Definition of the Caribbean Islands biogeographic region, with checklist and recommendations for standardized common names of amphibians and reptiles. Caribbean Herpetology 67: 1–53
  • Heimes, P. 2016. Snakes of Mexico. Chimaira, Frankfurt, 572 pp
  • Hernández-Ordóñez, Omar et al. 2015. Range extensions of amphibians and reptiles in the southeastern part of the Lacandona rainforest, Mexico. Revista Mexicana de Biodiversidad, doi:10.1016/j.rmb.2015.04.005 - get paper here
  • Johnson, Jerry D.; Vicente Mata-Silva, Elí García Padilla, and Larry David Wilson 2015. The Herpetofauna of Chiapas, Mexico: composition, distribution, and conservation. Mesoamerican Herpetology 2 (3): 272–329. - get paper here
  • KELLY-HERNÁNDEZ, ALFONSO & VÍCTOR VÁSQUEZ-CRUZ. 2021. Geographic distribution: PSEUDELAPHE FLAVIRUFA (Tropical Ratsnake). MEXICO: VERACRUZ: Municipality of Carillo Puerto. Herpetological Review 52 (3): 580. - get paper here
  • Lee, J. C. 2000. A field guide to the amphibians and reptiles of the Maya world. Cornell University Press, Ithaca,
  • Lee, J.C. 1996. The amphibians and reptiles of the Yucatán Peninsula. Comstock, Cornell University Press, Ithaca, 500 pp.
  • Lemos-Espinal JA, Smith GR, Woolrich-Piña GA 2018. Amphibians and reptiles of the state of San Luis Potosí, Mexico, with comparisons with adjoining states. ZooKeys 753: 83-106 - get paper here
  • Lemos-Espinal, Julio A. and James R. Dixon 2013. Amphibians and Reptiles of San Luis Potosí. Eagle Mountain Publishing, xii + 300 pp.
  • Maclean, William P. 1977. Island lists of West Indian amphibians and reptiles. Smithsonian Herp. Inf. Serv. (40): 1-47 - get paper here
  • Martin, Plul S. 1958. A biogeography of reptiles and amphibians in the Gomez Farias Region, Tamaulipas, Mexico. Miscellaneous publications, Museum of Zoology, University of Michigan (101): 1-102 + 7 plates - get paper here
  • Mata-Silva, V.; L.D. Wilson; J.D. Johnson; S. Mata-González; A. Ramírez-Bautista; J. García-Grajáles 2013. New distribution and elevation records for the snake Pseudelaphe flavirufa Cope, 1867 (Squamata: Colubridae) in Oaxaca, Mexico. Check List 9 (4):790-792 [retracted because of a misidentification] - get paper here
  • Mata-Silva, Vicente, Jerry D. Johnson, Larry David Wilson and Elí García-Padilla. 2015. The herpetofauna of Oaxaca, Mexico: composition, physiographic distribution, and conservation status. Mesoamerican Herpetology 2 (1): 6–62 - get paper here
  • Mattison, Chris 2007. The New Encyclopedia of Snakes. Princeton University Press
  • McCranie J R 2011. The snakes of Honduras. SSAR, Salt Lake City, 725 pp.
  • McCranie, James R. 2015. A checklist of the amphibians and reptiles of Honduras, with additions, comments on taxonomy, some recent taxonomic decisions, and areas of further studies needed. Zootaxa 3931 (3): 352–386 - get paper here
  • Mertens, R. & Rosenberg, H. 1943. Elaphe flavirufa (Cope), die mexikanische Nachtnatter. Wochenschr. Aquar. Terrar. 37 (3): 60-62
  • Mertens, Robert 1950. Nachruf auf eine Mexikanische Nachtnatter, Elaphe flavirufa. DATZ 3 (5): 75-76
  • O’Shea, M. 2018. The Book of Snakes. Ivy Press / Quarto Publishing, London, - get paper here
  • Peters, Wilhem Carl Hartwig 1869. Über neue Säugethiere (Colobus, Rhinolophus, Vesperus) und neue oder weniger bekannte Amphibien (Hemidactylus, Herpetodryas, Spilotes, Elaphis, Lamprophis, Erythrolamprus). Monatsber. königl. Akad. Wiss. Berlin. 1868 (December): 637-642 - get paper here
  • Pyron, R.Alexander; Frank T. Burbrink 2009. Neogene diversification and taxonomic stability in the snake tribe Lampropeltini (Serpentes: Colubridae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 52 (2): 524-529 - get paper here
  • Schulz, K. D. 1996. Eine Monographie der Schlangengattung Elaphe Fitzinger. Bushmaster, Berg (CH): 1-460
  • Schulz, Klaus-Dieter 1992. Short notes on the captive care and reproductive biology of Elaphe flavirufa (Cope,1867). Litteratura Serpentium 12 (6): 145-147 - get paper here
  • Schulz, Klaus-Dieter 1996. A monograph of the colubrid snakes of the genus Elaphe Fitzinger. Koeltz Scientific Books, 439 pp.
  • Schulz, Klaus-Dieter;Smith, Hobart M.;Auth, David L.; Chiszar, David;Breukelen, Fran van 1997. A second specimen of Elaphe flavirufa matudai (Reptilia: Serpentes). Bull. Chicago Herp. Soc. 32 (11): 225-226 - get paper here
  • Smith, H.M. 1941. Notes on Mexican Snakes of the Genus Elaphe. Copeia 1941 (3): 132-136 - get paper here
  • Smith, Hobart M. & Taylor, Edward H. 1945. An annotated checklist and key to the snakes of Mexico. Bull. US Natl. Mus. (187): iv + 1-239 - get paper here
  • Smith, Hobart M. & Williams, Kenneth L. 1966. The ratsnake of the Bay Islands, Honduras. Nat. Hist. Misc. Chicago Acad. Sci. 185: 1-2
  • Solís, J. M., L. D. Wilson, and J. H. Townsend. 2014. An updated list of the amphibians and reptiles of Honduras, with comments on their nomenclature. Mesoamerican Herpetology 1: 123–144 - get paper here
  • Stejneger, L.H., and T. Barbour 1917. A Check List of North American Amphibians and Reptiles. Harvard University Press, Cambridge. 4: i-iv, 1-125 - get paper here
  • Sunyer, Javier 2014. An updated checklist of the amphibians and reptiles of Nicaragua. Mesoamerican Herpetology 1 (2): 186–202. - get paper here
  • Sunyer, Javier & José́ Gabriel Martínez-Fonseca 2023. An updated country checklist to the amphibians and reptiles of Nicaragua. REVISTA NICARAGÜENSE DE BIODIVERSIDAD (100): 1-25 - get paper here
  • Taylor, E. H. 1950. Second contribution to the herpetology of San Luis Potosi. Univ. Kansas Sci. Bull. 33 (11): 441-457 - get paper here
  • Taylor, Edward H. 1939. Some Mexican serpents. Univ. Kansas Sci. Bull. 26 (13): 445-487 - get paper here
  • Taylor,E.H. 1949. A preliminary account of the herpetology of the state of San Luis Potosi, Mexico. Univ. Kansas Sci. Bull. 33 (2): 169-215 - get paper here
  • Terán-Juárez, Sergio A., Elí García Padilla, Vicente Mata-Silva, Jerry D. Johnson and Larry David Wilson. 2016. The herpetofauna of Tamaulipas, Mexico: composition, distribution, and conservation status. Mesoamerican Herpetology 3 (1): 43–113 - get paper here
  • Torres-Hernández, LA, Ramírez-Bautista A, Cruz-Elizalde R, Hernández-Salinas U, Berriozabal-Islas C, DeSantis DL, Johnson JD, Rocha A, García-Padilla E, Mata-Silva V, Fucsko LA, and Wilson LD. 2021. The herpetofauna of Veracruz, Mexico: composition, distribution, and conservation status. Amphibian & Reptile Conservation 15(2) [General Section]: 72–155 - get paper here
  • Utiger, Urs, Notker Helfenberger, Beat Schätti, Catherine Schmidt, Markus Ruf and Vincent Ziswiler 2002. Molecular systematics and phylogeny of Old World and New World ratsnakes, Elaphe Auct., and related genera (Reptilia, Squamata, Colubridae). Russ. J. Herpetol. 9 (2): 105-124. - get paper here
  • VIVANCO-MONTANÉ, ORLANDO RAFAEL; FRIDA SHAORI GARCIA VIVAS, EDGAR AHMED BELLO-SÁNCHEZ, ELIAS DE JESÚS CARMONA DÍAZ & JORGE E. MORALES MÁVIL. 2022. PSEUDELAPHE FLAVIRUFA (Tropical Rat Snake). DIET. Herpetological Review 53 (3): 517–518.
  • Wallach, Van; Kenneth L. Williams , Jeff Boundy 2014. Snakes of the World: A Catalogue of Living and Extinct Species. [type catalogue] Taylor and Francis, CRC Press, 1237 pp.
  • Wilson, L. D., & HAHN, D. E. 1973. The herpetofauna of the Islas de la Bahía, Honduras. Bulletin of the Florida State Museum 17: 93-150. - get paper here
  • Woolrich-Piña, G. A., E. García-Padilla, D. L. DeSantis, J. D. Johnson, V. Mata-Silva, and L. D. Wilson 2017. The herpetofauna of Puebla, Mexico: composition, distribution, and conservation status. Mesoamerican Herpetology 4(4): 791–884 - get paper here
 
External links  
Is it interesting? Share with others:

As link to this species use URL address:

https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Pseudelaphe&species=flavirufa

without field 'search_param'. Field 'search_param' is used for browsing search result.



Please submit feedback about this entry to the curator