Rhinophis dorsimaculatus Deraniyagala, 1941

Pyron, Robert Alexander, Ganesh, Sumaithangi Rajagopalan, Sayyed, Amit, Sharma, Vivek, Wallach, Van & Somaweera, Ruchira, 2016, A catalogue and systematic overview of the shield-tailed snakes (Serpentes: Uropeltidae), Zoosystema 38 (4), pp. 453-506 : 480

Rhinophis dorsimaculatus Deraniyagala, 1941

Rhinophis dorsimaculatus Deraniyagala, 1941: 800 .

TYPE MATERIAL. — Holotype: NMSL 86 . Apparently lost, along with a potential paratype (see Gower & Wickramasinghe 2016).

TYPE LOCALITY. — Marichchukkaddi, North-Western province, Sri Lanka.

DISTRIBUTION. — This species is known from the Northern province, only from the type locality in north-western dry zone of Sri Lanka near sea level (see Deraniyagala 1941), and nearby Sannar ( Gower & Wickramasinghe 2016).

DESCRIPTION

The holotype was moderately large, total length c. 350 mm, ventrals 238, subcaudals 6, dorsal scales in 17 rows midbody (see Smith 1943). Based on a newly examined collection from the type locality, ventrals 227-250, subcaudals 6-8, maximum total length 415 mm ( Gower & Wickramasinghe 2016). Color-pattern distinctive, with a dark brown to black dorsal and ventral coloration, and a large orange vertebral stripe (5-6 scale-rows wide), interrupted posteriorly with mostly discontinuous paravertebral large black blotches.

REMARK

A specimen of Rhinophis zigzag was mislabeled as R. dorsimaculatus by Somaweera (2006; see Gower & Maduwage 2011).