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Amblyodipsas polylepis (BOCAGE, 1873)

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Higher TaxaAtractaspididae (Aparallactinae), Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes)
SubspeciesAmblyodipsas polylepis polylepis (BOCAGE 1873)
Amblyodipsas polylepis hildebrandtii (PETERS 1877) 
Common Namespolylepis: Common Purple-glossed Snake
hildebrandtii: Common Purple-glossed Snake 
SynonymCalamelaps polylepis BOCAGE 1873: 216
Calamelaps unicolor FITZSIMONS (fide BOYCOTT 1992)
Calamelaps unicolor polylepis — FITZSIMONS 1946
Calamelaps unicolor polylepis — DE WITTE & LAURENT 1947
Amblyodipsas polylepis — WELCH 1994: 15
Amblyodipsas polylepis — BOYCOTT 1992
Amblyodipsas polylepis — BROADLEY et al. 2003: 86
Amblyodipsas polylepis — WALLACH et al. 2014: 26
Amblyodipsas polylepis — SPAWLS et al. 2018: 468
Amblyodipsas polylepis — PIETERSEN et al. 2021

Amblyodipsas polylepis polylepis (BOCAGE 1873)
Calamelaps miolepis — GÜNTHER 1888
Calamelaps warreni BOULENGER 1908: 234
Calamelaps mellandi BOULENGER 1915
Calamelaps unicolor warreni — FITZSIMONS 1946
Calamelaps unicolor miolepis — DE WITTE & LAURENT 1947
Calamelaps unicolor warreni — LOVERIDGE 1951: 108
Calamelaps unicolor warreni — LOVERIDGE 1957: 15
Calamelaps unicolor miolepis — BROADLEY 1959
Calamelaps unicolor miolepis — BROADLEY 1962
Amblyodipsas polylepis polylepis — AUERBACH 1987: 173
Amblyodipsas polylepis polylepis — BATES et al. 2014: 345

Amblyodipsas polylepis hildebrandtii (PETERS 1877)
Atractaspis Hildebrandtii PETERS 1877: 616
Calamelaps unicolor hildebrandtii — DE WITTE & LAURENT 1947
Calamelaps unicolor unicolor — LOVERIDGE 1957 (fide RASMUSSEN 1981)
Amblyodipsas polylepis hildebrandtii — RASMUSSEN 1981: 179
Amblyodipsas polylepis hildebrandtii — BROADLEY & HOWELL 1991: 28
Atractaspis polylepis — BAUER et al. 1995: 68 
DistributionAngola, Namibia, Botswana, S Democratic Republic of the Congo (Zaire), Zambia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Republic of South Africa (Transvaal, Natal, Swaziland), E/S Tanzania, coastal Kenya, Somalia

hildebrandtii: coastal Kenya, E/S Tanzania, Somalia; Type locality: Zanzibar.  
Reproductionoviparous 
TypesHolotype: lost, was MB (Museu Bocage) (probably lost in fire 1978)
Holotype: ZMB 8595 (not located fide V. Wallach, pers. comm.) collected by Hildebrandt [hildebrandtii] 
DiagnosisAdditional details, e.g. a detailed description or comparisons (1071 characters), are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. 
CommentVenomous!

Synonymy: TORNIER (1900) synonymized Atractaspis Hildebrandtii PETERS 1877 with Amblyodipsas unicolor. 
References
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  • BATES, M.F., ANDERSON, W.M., & BOURQUIN, S. 2009. Amblyodipsas p. polylepis (Bocage, 1873). Diet. African Herp News (47): 41-42 - get paper here
  • Bates, M.F.; Branch, W.R., Bauer, A.M.; Burger, M., Marais, J.; Alexander, G.J. & de Villliers, M.S. (eds.) 2014. Atlas and Red List of the Reptiles of South Africa, Lesotho, and Swaziland. Suricata 1. South African National Biodiversity Institute, Pretoria, 512 pp.
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  • Conradie, Werner; Pedro Vaz Pinto 2021. A snake with an appetite for the rare: Amblyodipsas polylepis (Bocage, 1873) feeding on the amphisbaenid Monopeltis luandae Gans, 1976. Herpetology Notes 14: 205-207
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