The morphological variation, extended distribution, and sequence divergence of a recently describ... more The morphological variation, extended distribution, and sequence divergence of a recently described of cobra Naja fuxiShi et al., 2022 captured from mountainous areas in Thailand are evaluated by using molecular and morphological analyses. We investigated the genetic variation and affinities of 72 specimens in the genus Naja by using mitochondrial DNA (cytochrome b and control region) and the nuclear DNA gene, C-mos. Morphological examination was conducted for 33 cobra specimens obtained from the northern, western, and north-eastern regions, and data on their natural history were gathered during field surveys. A high degree of genetic differentiation was shown to exist between the cobras collected from lowlands and those from mountainous areas. N. fuxi occurs in uplands bordering Thailand’s Central Basin, whereas the similar looking N. kaouthia Lesson, 1831 is more or less restricted to the lowlands. All phylogenetic and network analyses supported a distinct clade of N. fuxi from no...
Based on 85 examined specimens, photographs of living specimens and illustrations published in th... more Based on 85 examined specimens, photographs of living specimens and illustrations published in the literature, we refine the distribution ranges of both Gonyosoma prasinum (Blyth, 1854) and of the recently described species Gonyosoma coeruleum Liu, Hou, Ye Htet Lwin, Wang & Rao, 2021, which was not clearly addressed in its original description. We also redescribe the syntypes of Coluber prasinus Blyth, 1854 and the holotype of Gonyosoma gramineum Günther, 1864, we discuss the status of this latter taxon, and we describe the hemipenial morphology of G. coeruleum. Â
Hitherto, body bending behavior (BBB) has been reported for less than a dozen of different snake ... more Hitherto, body bending behavior (BBB) has been reported for less than a dozen of different snake species from tropical and subtropical America. Most authors assume that this rarely documented behavior is cryptic and antipredator, e.g., by taking the form of a liana the snake may avoid being attacked by a potential predator. We herein report the first records of this behavior in snakes in Asia and Europe. A dozen cases of body bending are documented for the colubrids Coelognathus radiatus (Boie, 1827), Ptyas carinata (Günther, 1858) and Oligodon joynsoni (Smith, 1917), and Malpolon monspessulanus (Hermann, 1804), and the natricids Fowlea piscator (Schneider, 1799) and Rhabdophis siamensis (Mell, 1931). In addition to the earlier reports from the New World, we suggest that BBB is widespread in snakes throughout the tropical and subtropical world. For a number of species that display it relatively frequently, such as C. radiatus in Thailand, BBB may have a significant adaptive value. W...
FIGURE 7. D. nigroserratus sp. nov. from Umphang district, Tak province, Thailand (ZFMK-SH-2008-1... more FIGURE 7. D. nigroserratus sp. nov. from Umphang district, Tak province, Thailand (ZFMK-SH-2008-10-4-no.17).
FIGURE 5. Boxplots of total lengths for D. nigroserratus sp. nov. (1, n=8), D. cyanochloris (2, n... more FIGURE 5. Boxplots of total lengths for D. nigroserratus sp. nov. (1, n=8), D. cyanochloris (2, n=30) and D. striatus (3, n=9). The boxplots display outliers (juveniles, open dots), the minimum, the interquartile range (box), median value (horizontal line in the box) and the maximum.
FIGURE 1. Forepart of the body of Dendrelaphis nigroserratus sp. nov. from Umphang district, Tak ... more FIGURE 1. Forepart of the body of Dendrelaphis nigroserratus sp. nov. from Umphang district, Tak province, Thailand (ZFMK-SH-2008-10-4-no.17).
FIGURE 4. Comparison of the postparietal region of Dendelaphis nigroserratus sp. nov. (A, holotyp... more FIGURE 4. Comparison of the postparietal region of Dendelaphis nigroserratus sp. nov. (A, holotype QSMI 1282, Tak, Thailand) and Dendrelaphis cyanochloris (B, ZFMK-SH-2011-11-26-no.06; Phop Phra, Thailand).
FIGURE 6. QSMI 1282, holotype of D. nigroserratus sp. nov., juvenile road-killed female from Umph... more FIGURE 6. QSMI 1282, holotype of D. nigroserratus sp. nov., juvenile road-killed female from Umphang district, province Tak, Thailand.
The morphological variation, extended distribution, and sequence divergence of a recently describ... more The morphological variation, extended distribution, and sequence divergence of a recently described of cobra Naja fuxiShi et al., 2022 captured from mountainous areas in Thailand are evaluated by using molecular and morphological analyses. We investigated the genetic variation and affinities of 72 specimens in the genus Naja by using mitochondrial DNA (cytochrome b and control region) and the nuclear DNA gene, C-mos. Morphological examination was conducted for 33 cobra specimens obtained from the northern, western, and north-eastern regions, and data on their natural history were gathered during field surveys. A high degree of genetic differentiation was shown to exist between the cobras collected from lowlands and those from mountainous areas. N. fuxi occurs in uplands bordering Thailand’s Central Basin, whereas the similar looking N. kaouthia Lesson, 1831 is more or less restricted to the lowlands. All phylogenetic and network analyses supported a distinct clade of N. fuxi from no...
Based on 85 examined specimens, photographs of living specimens and illustrations published in th... more Based on 85 examined specimens, photographs of living specimens and illustrations published in the literature, we refine the distribution ranges of both Gonyosoma prasinum (Blyth, 1854) and of the recently described species Gonyosoma coeruleum Liu, Hou, Ye Htet Lwin, Wang & Rao, 2021, which was not clearly addressed in its original description. We also redescribe the syntypes of Coluber prasinus Blyth, 1854 and the holotype of Gonyosoma gramineum Günther, 1864, we discuss the status of this latter taxon, and we describe the hemipenial morphology of G. coeruleum. Â
Hitherto, body bending behavior (BBB) has been reported for less than a dozen of different snake ... more Hitherto, body bending behavior (BBB) has been reported for less than a dozen of different snake species from tropical and subtropical America. Most authors assume that this rarely documented behavior is cryptic and antipredator, e.g., by taking the form of a liana the snake may avoid being attacked by a potential predator. We herein report the first records of this behavior in snakes in Asia and Europe. A dozen cases of body bending are documented for the colubrids Coelognathus radiatus (Boie, 1827), Ptyas carinata (Günther, 1858) and Oligodon joynsoni (Smith, 1917), and Malpolon monspessulanus (Hermann, 1804), and the natricids Fowlea piscator (Schneider, 1799) and Rhabdophis siamensis (Mell, 1931). In addition to the earlier reports from the New World, we suggest that BBB is widespread in snakes throughout the tropical and subtropical world. For a number of species that display it relatively frequently, such as C. radiatus in Thailand, BBB may have a significant adaptive value. W...
FIGURE 7. D. nigroserratus sp. nov. from Umphang district, Tak province, Thailand (ZFMK-SH-2008-1... more FIGURE 7. D. nigroserratus sp. nov. from Umphang district, Tak province, Thailand (ZFMK-SH-2008-10-4-no.17).
FIGURE 5. Boxplots of total lengths for D. nigroserratus sp. nov. (1, n=8), D. cyanochloris (2, n... more FIGURE 5. Boxplots of total lengths for D. nigroserratus sp. nov. (1, n=8), D. cyanochloris (2, n=30) and D. striatus (3, n=9). The boxplots display outliers (juveniles, open dots), the minimum, the interquartile range (box), median value (horizontal line in the box) and the maximum.
FIGURE 1. Forepart of the body of Dendrelaphis nigroserratus sp. nov. from Umphang district, Tak ... more FIGURE 1. Forepart of the body of Dendrelaphis nigroserratus sp. nov. from Umphang district, Tak province, Thailand (ZFMK-SH-2008-10-4-no.17).
FIGURE 4. Comparison of the postparietal region of Dendelaphis nigroserratus sp. nov. (A, holotyp... more FIGURE 4. Comparison of the postparietal region of Dendelaphis nigroserratus sp. nov. (A, holotype QSMI 1282, Tak, Thailand) and Dendrelaphis cyanochloris (B, ZFMK-SH-2011-11-26-no.06; Phop Phra, Thailand).
FIGURE 6. QSMI 1282, holotype of D. nigroserratus sp. nov., juvenile road-killed female from Umph... more FIGURE 6. QSMI 1282, holotype of D. nigroserratus sp. nov., juvenile road-killed female from Umphang district, province Tak, Thailand.
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