Eirenis coronella (SCHLEGEL, 1837)
Can you confirm these amateur observations of Eirenis coronella?
Eirenis coronella
Find more photos by Google images search: 
| Higher Taxa | Colubridae, Colubrinae, Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes) |
| Subspecies | Eirenis coronella coronella (SCHLEGEL 1837) Eirenis coronella fennelli ARNOLD 1982 Eirenis coronella ibrahimi SIVAN & WERNER 2003 |
| Common Names | E: Crowned Dwarf Racer G: Krönchen-Zwergnatter |
| Synonym | Calamaria coronella SCHLEGEL 1837: 48 Homalosoma (Pediophis) coronella — FITZINGER 1843 Homalosoma coronella — JAN 1862 Eirenis fasciatus JAN 1863 (fide FRANZEN & GLAW 2007: 251) Ablabes coronella — BOETTGER 1880: 140 Contia brevicauda NIKOLSKY 1907: 298 Contia coronella — WALL 1908: 802 Contia coronella — BOULENGER 1920 Eirenis coronella coronella — SCHMIDT 1939 Eirenis brevicauda — SCHMIDT 1939 Eirenis coronella fraseri SCHMIDT 1939 Eirenis arabica HAAS 1961 Eirenis arabica — CORKILL & COCHRANE 1966 Eirenis coronella — BARAN 1978 Eirenis (Pediophis) coronella — NAGY et al. 2004 Eirenis coronella — WALLACH et al. 2014: 257 Eirenis coronella — MEIRI et al. 2019 Eirenis coronella fennelli ARNOLD 1982 Eirenis coronella fennelli — SCHÄTTI & GASPERETTI 1994 Eirenis coronella fennelli — MAHLOW et al. 2013 Eirenis coronella ibrahimi SIVAN & WERNER 2003 Eirenis coronella ibrahimi — MAHLOW et al. 2013 |
| Distribution | Jordan, Syria, Egypt (Sinai), Iraq, W Iran, N/NE Saudi Arabia, Israel coronella: Iran, Syria, Israel; Type locality: Syria (restricted by SCHMIDT 1939) fennelli: Saudi Arabia; Type locality: Khulays, 22°09'N, 39°19'E, 150 m elevation. ibrahimi: Egypt (Sinai); |
| Reproduction | oviparous |
| Types | Neotype: HUJ 8410, designated by SIVAN & WERNER (2003) Holotype: ZSM 1928/0, adult [Eirenis fasciatus] Holotype: HUJ R 8645, Adult male [ibrahimi] Holotype: BMNH 1982.224 (A.A. Farrag, 1979) [fennelli] Syntypes: ZISP [Contia brevicauda] |
| Diagnosis | Diagnosis (fennelli): An apparently isolated population of Eirenis coronella distinguished from those to the north and east by larger adult size, much more robust build when mature and distinctive dorsal pattern: the series of mainly regular narrow, transverse bands across the dorsum that is found elsewhere is broken into staggered blotches or bars. Also the frontal scale is relatively small, its length usually being about equal to its distance from the snout tip and not distinctly longer as is typical of other populations [ARNOLD 1982; see Sivan & Werner 2003 for an alternative diagnosis]. Ontogenetic change: juveniles have stronger (darker) bands and head coloration , which changes from blackish to brown (see Gruber 2009: 82). |
| Comment | Type species: Calamaria coronella Schlegel, 1837 is the type species of the subgenus Pediophis FITZINGER 1843. The subgeneric allocation of this species remains unclear because NAGY et al. (2004) did not have any DNA available for analysis, but they speculate that it probably belongs to Pediophis. Synonymy: partly after ARNOLD 1982. Homalosoma coronelloides JAN 1862 has been synonymized with this species previously. Distribution: See map in Sivan & Werner 2003: Fig. 2. Previous authors included Eirenis coronella coronelloides as a subspecies (e.g. GRUBER 2009) which occurs in Turkey and thus would make this a European species. For a map see Sindaco et al. 2013. |
| Etymology | Etymology (fennelli): Named after the late Mr and Mrs F. Fennell who collected one of the paratypes and encouraged the collection of more. E. c. ibrahimi has been named after Dr. Adel A. Ibrahim of the Suez Canal University, North Sinai, Egypt, in recognition of his continual painstaking contribution to the knowledge of the herpetofauna of Sinai. |
| References |
|
| External links |