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Simalia nauta (HARVEY, BARKER, AMMERMAN & CHIPPINDALE, 2000)

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Higher TaxaPythonidae, Henophidia, Pythonoidea, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: Tanimbar Python
G: Tanimbar-Python 
SynonymMorelia nauta HARVEY, BARKER, AMMERMAN & CHIPPINDALE 2000: 163
Australiasis nauta — HOSER 2004
Morelia nauta — SCHLEIP & O’SHEA 2010
Morelia nauta — DE LANG 2013
Simalia nauta — REYNOLDS et al. 2014
Morelia nauta — WALLACH et al. 2014: 453
Simalia nauta — BARKER et al. 2015: 13 
DistributionIndonesia (Tanimbar group).

Type locality: Yamdena Island, Tanimbar group, Maluku, Indonesia  
Reproductionoviparous 
TypesHolotype: UTA 44482 
DiagnosisDiagnosis. A medium-sized species of Morelia distinguished from all its congeners by the following characteristics: (1) two to three pairs of enlarged, symmetrical parietals in contact medially; (2) dorsal pattern posteris one this arbing any tale of porsent; (6) adults gracile; reaching 1985 mm and 1.9 kg; (7) snout subacuminate in dorsal view; (8) ontogenetic color change subtle: juveniles have only slightly darker pattern than adults. Although one of the most recently diverged species of scrub python, Morelia nauta is the most distinctive morphologiimmediately recognizable by its habitus, distinctive color pattern, and low scale counts. Unlike most Morelia, M. nauta exhibits only subtle ontogenetic changes in coloration. Like adults, juveniles are brown or tan and differ only in being slightly darker than adults. The snout is distinctly more acuminate than in other species (Figs. 1, 9). Patterned individuals of M. nauta differ from all other scrub pythons in having rows of cream spots on their flanks; other scrub pythons have transverse banding. (Harvey et al. 2000: 163)


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CommentThis species is closely related to M. amethistina.

Habitat: partly arboreal (Harrington et al. 2018). 
EtymologyNamed after the Latin word “nauta” for sailor, because the species could have reached its current location only by rafting. Apparently based on the evolutionary species concept. 
References
  • Barker, D. G., Barker, T. M., Davis, M. A. and Schuett, G. W. 2015. A review of the systematics and taxonomy of Pythonidae: an ancient serpent lineage. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 175 (1): 1-19; doi: 10.1111/zoj.12267 - get paper here
  • Ferencz, B.R. 2005. Terrarienhaltung und Vermehrung des Tanimbar-Pythons Morelia nauta HARVEY, BARKER, AMMERMANN & CHIPPINDALE 2000. Elaphe 13 (3): 22-28
  • 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
  • Harvey, Michael B., David B. Barker, Loren K. Ammerman and Paul T. Chippindale 2000. Systematics of pythons of the Morelia amethistina complex (Serpentes: Boidae) with the description of three new species. Herpetological Monographs 14: 139-185 - get paper here
  • Hoser, R. 2004. A reclassification of the pythoninae including the descriptions of two new genera, two new species and nine new subspecies. Part II. Crocodilian 4 (4) (June 2004): 21-40 - get paper here
  • Lang, Ruud de 2013. The snakes of the Moluccas (Maluku), Indonesia. Edition Chimaira, 417 pp. - get paper here
  • Reynolds, R. Graham; Matthew L. Niemiller, Liam J. Revell 2014. Toward a Tree-of-Life for the boas and pythons: Multilocus species-level phylogeny with unprecedented taxon sampling. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 71: 201–213 [published online in 2013] - get paper here
  • Schleip, Wulf D & O’Shea, M. 2010. Annotated checklist of the recent and extinct pythons (Serpentes, Pythonidae), with notes on nomenclature, taxonomy, and distribution. ZooKeys 66 (2010) : 29-79 - get paper here
  • 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.
 
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