Stegonotus cucullatus ( Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854 )

Karin, Benjamin R., Stubbs, Alexander L., Arifin, Umilaela, Bloch, Luke M., Ramadhan, G., Iskandar, Djoko T., Arida, Evy, Reilly, Sean B., Kusnadi, Agus & Mcguire, Jimmy A., 2018, The herpetofauna of the Kei Islands (Maluku, Indonesia): Comprehensive report on new and historical collections, biogeographic patterns, conservation concerns, and an annotated checklist of species from Kei Kecil, Kei Besar, Tam, and Kur, Raffles Bulletin of Zoology 66, pp. 704-738 : 729-730

Stegonotus cucullatus ( Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854)

(Fig. 31)

Type locality. Dore , Yapen Island, Indonesia .

Distribution in the Kei Islands. We collected single specimens of Stegonotus cucullatus from Kei Kecil and Kur. The AM expedition collected a single unidentified specimen of Stegonotus from Kei Besar that we presume is S. cucullatus . Given this distribution, it is likely to also occur on Tam and other small islands.

Fig. 30. Photo of dorsum and venter and head scales of specimen of Dendrelaphis keiensis from Kei Kecil (ALS 495). Fig. 31. Photo in life of Stegonotus keiensis from Kei Kecil (ALS 525).

Natural history. On Kei Kecil, the single specimen was found at night climbing a tree buttress about 1 m off the ground near Ohoililir beach. On Kur, the single specimen was collected in a garden area near the village. Known in Australia to be an able tree-climber, though also often found on the ground, around human habitations, or in freshwater areas feeding on lizards, frogs, or warm-blooded prey ( Wilson & Swan, 2013, p. 472).

Field identification. A robust, medium-sized (total length to 1.3 m) non-venomous snake. Colour uniform brown to dark-grey or black above, belly white or cream, sometimes with black flecks and blotches. Scales smooth; 17 (sometimes 19) midbody scale rows; 170–225 ventrals; 65–105 divided subcaudals ( Cogger, 2014, p. 840).

Remarks. Boulenger (1893, p. 365) synonymised Stegonotus keyensis Doria, 1875 as a junior synonym of S. cucullatus . This name is therefore available if the Kei Islands population is ever recovered as a distinct species.