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Tropidophis melanurus (SCHLEGEL, 1837)

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Higher TaxaTropidophiidae, Henophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes)
SubspeciesTropidophis melanurus melanurus (SCHLEGEL 1837)
Tropidophis melanurus dysodes SCHWARTZ & THOMAS 1960
Tropidophis melanurus ericksoni SCHWARTZ & THOMAS 1960 
Common NamesE: Giant Trope, Wood Snake
G: Kubanische Zwergboa 
SynonymBoa melanura SCHLEGEL 1837: 399
Tropidophis melanurus — BIBRON in DE LA SAGRA 1840: 208
Tropidophis melanurus — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1844: 491
Tropidophis melanurus — JAN 1864
Ungualia [sic] melanura — GARMAN 1887: 278
Ungalia melanura — BOULENGER 1893: 111
Tropidophis melanurus — STULL 1928: 39
Tropidophis melanurus melanurus — SCHWARTZ & OGREN 1956
Tropidophis melanurus — SCHWARTZ & HENDERSON 1991: 638
Tropidophis melanurus — MATTISON 1995: 112
Tropidophis melanurus — MCDIARMID, CAMPBELL & TOURÉ 1999: 220
Tropidophis melanurus — MATTISON 2007: 137
Tropidophis melanurus — WALLACH et al. 2014: 754

Tropidophis melanurus dysodes SCHWARTZ & THOMAS 1960
Tropidophis melanurus dysodes — SCHWARTZ & HENDERSON 1988
Tropidophis melanurus dysodes — POWELL & HENDERSON 2012

Tropidophis melanurus ericksoni SCHWARTZ & THOMAS 1960
Tropidophis melanurus ericksoni — SCHWARTZ & HENDERSON 1988
Tropidophis melanurus ericksoni — POWELL & HENDERSON 2012 
DistributionCuba

melanurus: throughout Cuba with exception of range of T. m. dysodes. Type locality: Cuba.

dysodes: Pinar del Rio Province, Cuba. Type locality: 1 km N La Coloma, Pinar del Rio Province, Cuba.

ericksoni: Isla de la Juventud.Type locality: Bibijagua, Isla de la Juventud.  
Reproductionovovivparous 
TypesHolotype: Unlocated (SCHWARTZ & HENDERSON 1988)
Holotype: AMNH 82893 [dysodes]
Holotype: AMNH 82897 [ericksoni] 
DiagnosisDiagnosis (genus and family). Tropidophiids differ from other caenophidian snakes by the following combination of features: frontal supraorbital shelf present and demarcated medially by narrow shallow longitudinal furrow often bearing a line of foramina on the dorsal surface of the frontal; maxilla suborbital ramus extends posteriorly to posterior quarter of orbit; vomer septum transversely fenestrated; palatine vomerine process splays laterally at tips to buttress vomer posteriorly; trigeminal foramina enclosed by prootic; ectopterygoid contact with pterygoid is expanded significantly on the dorsal surface of the pterygoid body; vertebrae lack prezygapophyseal processes; expanded hypapophyses with a sharp anteroventral corner present in the midand posterior trunk vertebrae; hypapophyses extend to the cloacal vertebrae with fused lymphapophyses; anterior caudal vertebrae with reduced knob-like or spur-like haemapophyses; middle and posterior vertebrae with expanded haemapophyses fused proximally and forming a small, broad and short peduncular base. (Zaher et al. 2024)


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CommentSubspecies: Tropidophis melanurus bucculentus COPE, 1868 has been elevated to full species status.

For illustrations see Cooper, 1958; Schwartz and Thomas, 1960; Petzold, 1963; Petzold, 1969; Schwartz and Henderson, 1985.

Type species: Boa melanura SCHLEGEL 1837: 399 is the type species of the genus Tropidophis BIBRON 1840.

Type genus: Tropidophis BIBRON 1840 is the type genus of the family Tropidophiidae Brongersma, 1951 (originally as Tropidophinae Brongersma, 1951: 124)

Phylogeny (genus, family): Zaher et al. 2024

Key: mainland South-America: Ortega-Andrade et al. 2022: 30.

Comparisons: for lists of measurements and scalation characters among Tropidophis see Hedges 2002.

Habitat: partly arboreal (Harrington et al. 2018). 
EtymologyNamed after Greek melanos (μέλανος), black, and possibly Greek oura (ουρα), tail, although most specimens do not appear to be particularly dark.

The genus was named after Greek tropidion (τροπίδιον), keel + Greek ophis (ὄφις), snake, serpent. [“...Le nom de Tropidophis, formé des mots grecs τρόπις ἶδος carène, ὄφις serpent, rappellera que le nouveau genre d'Ophidiens auquel nous l'appliquons a chacune des pièces de son écaillure relevée d'une petite saillie longitudinal..." 
References
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  • Boulenger, G.A. 1893. Catalogue of the snakes in the British Museum (Nat. Hist.) I. London (Taylor & Francis), 448 pp. - get paper here
  • Brongersma, L.D. 1951. Some notes upon the anatomy of Tropidophis and Trachyboa (Serpentes). Zoologische Mededelingen 31: 107-124 - get paper here
  • Caballero, Daylon Fundora; Yuney Hamedh Cruz Antigua 2023. Failed predation by a Cuban Giant Trope, Tropidophis melanurus (Serpentes, Tropidophiidae), on a Cuban Giant Anole, Anolis equestris (Squamata: Dactyloidae). Reptiles & Amphibians 30 (1): e19637 - get paper here
  • Cooper, J.E. 1958. Ascent to Cueva del Aura. Maryland Nat. 28(1-4):2-16.
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  • Díaz, L. M. y Cádiz, A. 2020. A new species of Tropidophis (Squamata: Tropidophiidae) and molecular phylogeny of the Cuban radiation of the genus. Novitates Caribaea (16): 1-19; doi: 10.33800/nc.vi16.222 - get paper here
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  • RODRÍGUEZ-CABRERA, TOMÁS M.; ERNESTO MORELL SAVALL, ALEJANDRO M. RODRÍGUEZ-GONZÁLEZ, ALEJANDRO HERNÁNDEZ GÓMEZ & JAVIER TORRES. 2021. Predation on murid rodents by the Giant Trope, Tropidophis melanurus (Squamata: Tropidophiidae), with comments on predation of mammals by snakes of the genus Tropidophis. Reptiles & Amphibians 28(3): 516–519. - get paper here
  • RODRÍGUEZ-CABRERA, TOMÁS M.; ERNESTOL MORELL SAVAL, RAMSES ALONSO NAVARRO, JOHN Q. PIGGOT, ALEJANDRO M. RODRÍGUEZ-GONZÁLEZ & JAVIER TORRES. 2021. Giant dwarfs: Very large giant tropes Tropidophis melanurus (Squamata: Tropidophiidae), and new maximum size records for the species. Reptiles & Amphibians 28(3): 404–410. - get paper here
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