Coluber modestus Wied, 1824

Vanzolini, Paulo E. & Myers, Charles W., 2015, The Herpetological Collection Of Maximilian, Prince Of Wied (1782 - 1867), With Special Reference To Brazilian Materials, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2015 (395), pp. 1-155 : 54

Coluber modestus Wied, 1824

1824 Isis : 667 (diagnosis).

1825 Beitra¨ge: 326.

PRESENT STATUS: Uncertain, a nomen dubium.

REMARKS: This species was diagnosed in the Isis and subsequently described in the Beitra¨ge, but not figured. It was not indexed by Boulenger (1896) or by Peters and Orejas- Miranda (1970) and has not been identified in the literature. Wied’s one specimen came from Jucu (‘‘Flu¨ sschen Jucu´, unweit des Espirito Santo ’’).

Wied stated in the Beitra¨ge that the specimen was received in not quite fresh condition and that he did not know whether it could be preserved, although he thought that the color probably would not change much in spirits. Ihre Farbe ist sehr einfach, allein die Schuppen haben einen besonders scho¨nen Glanz (‘‘Their color is very simple, but the scales have a particularly beautiful shine’’). Since it was not preserved, there is no specimen in the collection.

Coluber undulatus Wied, 1824 Plate 24

1824 Isis : 667 (diagnosis).

1825 Beitra¨ge: 329.

1831 Abbildungen: Lief. 14 ( figs. 1–2 of composite pl.).

PRESENT STATUS: Echinanthera undulata (Wied, 1824) .

REMARKS: This species was diagnosed in the Isis and described in the Beitra¨ge from one specimen. A composite plate (including Coluber variabilis ) in the Abbildungen shows the head and anterior body in dorsolateral view and the head and nape in dosal view (see pl. 24).

The type locality is ‘‘ Parahyba,’’ which means the vicinity of the Rio Paraiba, where it is crossed by the road, i.e., near Campos (21 ° 459S, 41 ° 039W). There are no specimens in the collection.

Coluber merremii Wied, 1821 Plate 32

1821 Reise 2: 121.

1824 Isis : 667 (diagnosis).

1824 Abbildungen: Lief. 8 ( fig. 1 of composite pl.). 1825 Beitra¨ge: 332.

PRESENT STATUS: Liophis miliaris merremii (Wied, 1821) .

REMARKS: This snake was first named and described in a footnote to the Reise (the type locality is Sa˜ o Pedro d’Alcaˆtara 5 Itabuna). In the Beitra¨ge there is a description, with measurements and scale counts of five Maximilian specimens, plus Ein sechstes Exemplar, jetzt in der Sammlung des Herrn Hofrath Merrem (‘‘a sixth specimen now in Merrem’s collection’’). The plate (pl. 32) is excellent and there has never been any doubt about the identification. Gans (1964: 35–39) and Dixon (1983) discussed attributions of names in the synonymy of Liophis miliaris Linnaeus , and the latter outlined an arrangement of subspecies.

There is in Maximilian’s manuscript catalog the entry no. 143, ‘‘ Liophis merremii ,’’ but no specimens are known to be extant.

Figures

Fig. 1. Paulo E. Vanzolini. On Serra Tapeque´m (a tepui remnant), Roraima, NE Brazil (July 14,

Fig. 2. Pen-and-watercolor sketches dated 1815 and attributed to Prince Maximilian. Top: Gesamtansicht der Expedition (‘‘General View of the expedition’’), showing pack mules, handlers, and military guard. Bottom: Prinz Maximilian mit Teilnehmern seiner Expedition (‘‘Prince Max with members of his expedition’’). From Bosch, 1991: 84–85. (Courtesy of Brazilian Library of Robert Bosch GmbH, Stuttgart)