Calamaria similis QI, NGUYEN, YANG, XU, DAVID, SHI, LIU, RONG, KOROLEV, POYARKOV & WANG, 2026
Can you confirm these amateur observations of Calamaria similis?
Calamaria similis
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| Higher Taxa | Colubridae, Calamariinae, Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes) |
| Subspecies | |
| Common Names | E: Similar Reed Snake |
| Synonym | Calamaria similis QI, NGUYEN, YANG, XU, DAVID, SHI, LIU, RONG, KOROLEV, POYARKOV & WANG 2026 |
| Distribution | China (Guangdong, Guangxi: Yangchun City, Yangjiang City, Guangdong Province, and Longzhou County, Chongzuo City, Guangxi) Type locality: China Guangdong Province, Yangjiang City, Yangchun City, Shuangjiao Town, Qifendong Village [now Dahe Village]; 22.07061848°N, 111.41304597°E; altitude 44 m asl |
| Reproduction | |
| Types | Holotype: SYS r001816, male; China, Guangdong Province, Yangjiang City, Yangchun City, Shuangjiao Town, Qifendong Village [now Dahe Village]; 22.07061848°N, 111.41304597°E; altitude 44 m a.sl.; collected by JJL on 12 August 2017; . Paratypes (n=3): China, 1 subadult ♀; Guangxi ZAR, Chongzuo City, Longzhou County, Nonggang National Nature Reserve; 22.46164593°N, 106.97141398°E; altitude 350 m a.s.l.; collected by CZR on 24 May 2017; SYS r001725, 1 subadult ♂; Guangxi ZAR, Chongzuo City, Longzhou County, Nonggang National Nature Reserve; 22.46164593°N, 106.97141398°E; altitude 350 m a.s.l.; collected by CZR on 24 May 2017; SYS r001726; 1 subadult ♂; Guangxi ZAR, Chongzuo City, Longzhou County, Shuikou Town, Shangjin Village; 22.317845°N, 107.022622°E; altitude ca. 300 m a.s.l.; collected by JHY in 2013; KFBG 14507. |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis. Calamaria similis sp. nov. is distinguished from all other congeners by the combination of the following morphological characters: Maxillary teeth eight, unmodified; rostral higher than wide; prefrontal shorter than frontal and contacting the first two supralabials; mental not in contact with anterior chin shields; dorsal scales in 13–13–13 rows, smooth throughout; a single preocular and postocular; four supralabials, with the 2nd and 3rd contacting the eye; five infralabials; six scales surrounding the paraparietal; 145–168 ventrals (145–155 in males, 168 in female); 15–23 paired subcaudals (20–23 in males, 15 in female); a relatively short tail (6.4–9.3% of total length in males, 6.1% in the female), thick and nearly cylindrical, gradually tapering to an obtuse point. Dorsal coloration dark brown to blackish brown, the body marked with five longitudinal rows of dark-edged scales, forming indistinct, discontinuous stripes of variable clarity along the body; two nuchal collars are present, the first is a larger, dark brown collar, and the second is smaller and without pattern; two pairs of light spots are present on the dorsal tail, variably developed and sometimes indistinct. The ventral surface yellowish white, immaculate; underside of tail lacking a broad median black stripe extending posteriorly to the tail tip. (Qi et al. 2026) Unfortunately we had to temporarily remove additional information as this was scraped by multiple AI companies who sell that data. However, these details, e.g. detailed descriptions (about less than half a page) are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us if you need any of this material. |
| Comment | |
| Etymology | Named after Latin adjective meaning similar, referring to the strong morphological resemblance of this species toCalamaria pavimentata. This similarity has resulted in the species being previously misidentified and treated asC. pavimentatain numerous earlier studies (e.g., Yang and Zheng 2018). |
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