Liotyphlops anops (Cope, 1899)

Marra Santos, Fidelis Junio, 2023, A new species of the genus Liotyphlops Peters, 1881 (Serpentes, Anomalepididae) from Colombia and the synonymization of Liotyphlops beui (Amaral, 1924) with Liotyphlops ternetzii (Boulenger, 1896), ZooKeys 1146, pp. 87-114 : 87

publication ID	https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1146.94607
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:9F4ADF00-1BE7-4878-9B98-FB23B72B4435
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/24CF3A26-0C61-5E3C-861D-8D27B6FE9014
treatment provided by	ZooKeys by Pensoft
scientific name	Liotyphlops anops (Cope, 1899)
status

Treatment

Liotyphlops anops (Cope, 1899) View in CoL

Figs 6 View Figure 6 , 7 View Figure 7 , 8 View Figure 8 , 9 View Figure 9 , 10 View Figure 10

Helminthophis anops Cope, 1899: 10, pl. 4 fig. la-f. Type locality: "New Grenada", Colombia. According to McDiarmid et al. (1999), Dunn (1944: 48) listed the type locality as "near Bogota". The latter was the specific locality mentioned on the first page of Cope’s (1899: 3) posthumous publication and the source of much of the material.

Liotyphlops anops Dunn 1944: 48.

Liotyphlops metae - Dunn 1944: 49, figs 3, 4. Holotype: MLS 8. Type locality: "Villavicencio, Meta [Colombia], 498 meters". Placed in synonymy by Dixon and Kofron (1984: 259).

Type material.

Lectotype. AMNH R-17540, at least 200 mm TL (estimated from Fig. 7 View Figure 7 ; specimen broken); type locality: Colombia, neighborhood of Bogota. Lectotype by present designation.

Diagnosis.

Liotyphlops anops is distinguished from L. albirostris , L. beui , L. bondensis , L. caissara , L. haadi , L. schubarti , L. taylori , L. ternetzii , and L. wilderi in having four (vs three) scales contacting the posterior edge of the prefrontal. It is further distinguished from L. argaleus and L. trefauti in having two scales (vs one scale) contacting the posterior edge of the nasal between the second supralabial and the prefrontal. It is distinguished from L. palauophis sp. nov. in having the frontal scale single and 26/24/24 scales around the body (vs frontal scale divided and 28/26/26 scales around the body, and from L. sousai in having 562-597 dorsal scales and 531-572 ventral scales (vs 439 dorsal scales and 427 ventral scales).

Redescription.

Meristic data in Table 1 View Table 1 . Total length 186.2-337.7 mm, head length 3.2-4.4 mm (1.3-1.7% TL), snout-vent length 184-332 mm (98.3-98.8% TL), tail length 2.2-5.7 mm (1.2-1.7% TL), head width 2.5-3.7 mm (78.1-85.7% HL), and head height 1.8-2.8 mm (56.2-63.6% HL). Body covered with cycloid scales. Rostral large, longer than wide, contacting nasals anterolaterally, prefrontals laterally, and single frontal posteriorly. Pair of triangular prefrontals, bordered anterolaterally by rostral, ventrally by large divided nasal, and dorsoposteriorly by frontal. Posterior edge of prefrontals passing posterior edge of rostral. Divided nasal scale bordered anteriorly by rostral, dorsally by prefrontal, ventrally by first and second supralabials, and posteriorly by two scales that lie between prefrontal and second supralabial. Eye spot poorly visible. Four scales contacting posterior edge of prefrontal (three cycloid scales + frontal). Two scales contacting posterior edge of nasal between second supralabial and prefrontal. Five or six scales in first vertical row of dorsal scales. Mental triangular, not divided, wider than long, contacting first infralabials. Supralabials four, infralabials three. Scales around body 26/24/24. Dorsal scales 562-597, ventral scales 531-572, and subcaudal scales 12-14.

Coloration in alcohol.

Dorsal and ventral body brown to pale cream. Head pale cream. Scales near opening of cloaca pale cream.

Description of skull.

High-resolution x-ray computed tomography of skull bones in Figs 8 View Figure 8 - 10 View Figure 10 . Main body of premaxilla on ventral surface of snout. Maxilla-premaxilla contact widely separated. Lateral maxillary foramina absent. Maxilla alveolar row oriented transversely. Nasal fused. Nasal-frontal boundary convex posteriorly in shallow W-shaped suture. Prefrontal separated from nasal. Prefrontal moveably articulated to frontal. Postorbital element present. Posterior orbital margin incomplete. Frontals gradually tapering anteriorly. Frontal paired. Frontal-parietal contact (dorsal aspect) anteriorly concave, frontals extending posteriorly into broad median embayment in parietals. Parietal paired. Posterior border of parietal in contact with otico-occipital. Supraoccipital present and fused not participating in internal sidewall of neurocranium. Supratemporal present. Posteromedial flange of septomaxilla short, not contacting frontal. Septomaxilla with lateral flange contributing to posterior border of external naris. Fenestra for duct of Jacobson’s organ posteroventrally positioned. Palatine not in contact with vomer, maxilla, or pterygoid. Ectopterygoid present. Splenial not present as discrete element. Coronoid and angular separated by prearticular portion of compound bone. Retroarticular process long, longer than articular facet. Teeth present in maxilla and dentary, but lacking in premaxilla, palatine, and pterygoid.

Distribution.

Central Colombia (neighborhood of Bogota and Villavicencio in the department of Meta) (Fig. 6 View Figure 6 ).