Letheobia ataeniata (Boulenger)

Wallach, Van, 2007, A review of East and Central African species of Letheobia Cope, revived from the synonymy of Rhinotyphlops Fitzinger, with descriptions of five new species (Serpentes: Typhlopidae), Zootaxa 1515, pp. 31-68 : 56

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.177278

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6237839

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/03B587D9-FF8C-380A-90A8-FE6AF109F8A9

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Letheobia ataeniata (Boulenger)
status

 

Letheobia ataeniata (Boulenger)

( Fig 8 View FIGURE 8 B)

Somali blind-snake

Typhlops unitaeniatus var. ataeniatus Boulenger 1912 , Ann. Mus. Civ. Stor. Nat. Genova, 5: 331. Type locality: Dolo, la frontiera Italo-Etiopica [= Somalia] (04°11’N, 42°05’E, elevation 200 m), collected by Captain C. Citerni, syntypes BMNH 1946.1.10.78 (ex-BMNH 1912.6.6.12) & MSNG (2 specimens); Boulenger 1915b: 616; Werner 1921: 331; Calabresi 1923: 160, 1927: 31 & 51; Scortecci 1930: 15.

Typhlops somalicus , – (not Boulenger) Calabresi 1918: 123.

Typhlops unitaeniatus ataeniatus – Scortecci 1939: 264; Parker 1949: 22; Battersby 1954: 246; Largen 1978: 59.

Typhlops ataeniatus – Gans & Laurent 1965: 59; Gans & Taub 1965: 107.

Rhinotyphlops unitaeniatus – (not Peters) Roux-Estève 1974: 241, 1975: 445 (part); Hahn 1980: 36 (part); Lanza 1983: 219, 1990: 430 (part); Lambert 1985: 66 (part); Largen & Rasmussen 1993: 322.

Rhinotyphlops unitaeniatus ataeniatus – Largen 1978: 59.

Rhinotyphlops ataeniatus – Wallach 1994: 219; McDiarmid et al. 1999: 78; Spawls et al. 2006: 92.

Description. Head shape and shield pattern similar to L. unitaeniata . Scale rows usually 26-24-24; MD 443– 531 (mean 487.83). L/D ratio 34–72. Uniform yellow-brown to black, top of head with a short median orange or yellow stripe.

Size. Largest specimen (MZUF 27171 – Mareri, Somalia) 455 mm in total length. This species seems to average a little larger than Letheobia unitaeniata ( Fig. 1 View FIGURE 1 ).

Habitat. Somali Acacia-Commiphora bushland and thicket. Sympatric with L. unitaeniata on the sandy levees on the west bank of the Juba River ( Hoevers & Johnson, 1982).

Distribution. Somalia, eastern Ethiopia (Ogaden) and just entering northeastern Kenya, 25–1000 m ( Fig. 12).

Localities. ETHIOPIA. Callafo AAU/H863-64. SOMALIA. Afgoi ( Scortecci 1930) MZUF 1080-81; MZUT 1765 (2); Beidos MZUF 2467; Chisimaio MZUF 6920; Dolo BMNH 1946.1.10.78 (holotype); Gelib to Margherita MZUF 976; Haud BMNH 1949.2.1.1 (08°26'N, 46°00’E), 1949.1.1.2 (08°26'N, 45°43'E), 1949.1.1.3 (08°29'N, 45°34'E), 1949.1.1.4 (08°10'N, 46°30'E); Lower Shebeli NHCL 1534; Mareri (Juba Sugar Project: Hoevers & Johnson 1982) CAS 151200, 225266-70; MZUF 27171-78; 33660; Totungas to Obbia MZUF 1123; Zona basso Uebi ( Calabresi 1923). KENYA. Malka Murri (Daua River: Battersby 1954) BMNH 1952.1.8.88.

Remarks. The holotype was collected near the Ethiopia-Somalia border at Dolo. Largen & Rasmussen (1993) list the coordinates for Dolo as 04°11’N, 42°05’E, placing it in Somalia. The Operational Navigation Charts ONC L-5 and L-6 show Dolo at 04°11’N, 42°03’E, placing it in Ethiopia, noting however that the “administration boundary is in dispute.”

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Reptilia

Order

Squamata

Family

Typhlopidae

Genus

Letheobia

Loc

Letheobia ataeniata (Boulenger)

Wallach, Van 2007
2007
Loc

Rhinotyphlops ataeniatus

Spawls 2006: 92
Wallach 1994: 219
1994
Loc

Rhinotyphlops unitaeniatus ataeniatus

Largen 1978: 59
1978
Loc

Rhinotyphlops unitaeniatus

Largen 1993: 322
Lambert 1985: 66
Lanza 1983: 219
Hahn 1980: 36
Roux-Esteve 1974: 241
1974
Loc

Typhlops ataeniatus

Gans 1965: 59
Gans 1965: 107
1965
Loc

Typhlops unitaeniatus ataeniatus

Largen 1978: 59
Battersby 1954: 246
Scortecci 1939: 264
1939
Loc

Typhlops somalicus

Calabresi 1918: 123
1918
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