Synophis zamora, Torres-Carvajal, Omar, Echevarria, Lourdes Y., Venegas, Pablo J., German Chavez, & Camper, Jeffrey D., 2015

Torres-Carvajal, Omar, Echevarria, Lourdes Y., Venegas, Pablo J., German Chavez, & Camper, Jeffrey D., 2015, Description and phylogeny of three new species of Synophis (Colubridae, Dipsadinae) from the tropical Andes in Ecuador and Peru, ZooKeys 546, pp. 153-179 : 160-164

Taxon classification Animalia Squamata Colubridae

Synophis zamora sp. n.

Synophis zamora Proposed standard English name: Zamoran fishing snakes

Synophis zamora Proposed standard Spanish name: Serpientes pescadoras de Zamora

Holotype.

Ecuador: Provincia Zamora Chinchipe: QCAZ 9174 (Figs 7, 8), adult male from Las Orquídeas, 4 km from río Nangaritza (4°15'47.52"S, 78°41'27.93"W, 1843 m), collected on 19 April 2009 by E. E. Tapia, J. Loe Deichmann and A. F. Jiménez.

Paratypes.

Ecuador: Provincia Zamora Chinchipe: QCAZ 9175, adult male, same locality data as holotype; QCAZ 12773, adult male from Reserva Numbami, 18 km on road Zamora-Romerillos bajo (4°10'24.64"S, 78°57'29.63"W, 1552 m), collected on 09 July 2014 by S. R. Ron, D. A. Paucar, P.J. Venegas, D. Almeida, D. Velalcázar, M. J. Navarrete, S. Arroyo, N. Páez and Z. Lange; QCAZ 13854, adult male from Bombuscaro (4°6'42.98"S, 78°58'21.22"W, 1543 m), Podocarpus National Park, collected on 2 March 2015 by D. Rivadeneira, F. Mora, J. C. Sánchez, D. Velalcázar, D. Núñez, J. Pinto, K. Cruz and Luis T.

Diagnosis.

Synophis zamora can be distinguished from other species of Synophis by having a noncapitate, bilobed hemipenis with a large lateral spine at the base of the hemipenial body (Fig. 9); 19 longitudinal rows of dorsals at midbody; strongly keeled dorsals except for first row, which is weakly keeled (at least posteriorly); and 147-153 ventrals in males. Scutellational characters of all recognized species of Synophis are presented in Table 3.

Description of the holotype.

Adult male (Figs 7, 8); SVL 349 mm; tail length 185 mm; eye diameter 1.34 mm; pupil round; head width 5.15 mm at level of supralabials 6 and 7; head length 11.05 mm from snout to posterior margin of jaw; width at midbody 5.06 mm; head distinct from neck.

Prefrontals fused in a rectangular scale, wider than long; frontal single, heptagonal, slightly wider than long; parietals large, paired, longer than wide; loreal trapezoidal, two times longer than high; preocular single, bordering anterior margin of orbit; supraocular single, bordering dorsal margin of orbit; temporals 1+2; anterior temporal more than two times longer than high; posterior temporals longer than high, approximately one half the length of anterior temporal; internasals in contact medially, distinctly wider than long; nasals not in contact; rostral visible from above, concave, two times wider than long, in contact with first supralabials, nasals, and internasals; mental triangular, in contact with first pair of infralabials; infralabials 10/10; supralabials 9/9 (fourth, fifth and sixth entering orbit on both sides); anterior genials almost three times longer than wide, bordered laterally by infralabials 1-5; posterior genials three times longer than wide, in contact anteromedially and separated by three gulars posteriorly, and bordered laterally by infralabials 5-6; dorsal scale rows 19-19-17, first row weakly keeled from 15th ventral, other rows strongly keeled; anal single; ventrals 147; subcaudals 103, paired.

Hemipenial morphology.

The following description is based on the right hemipenis of the holotype (Fig. 9; QCAZ 9174). The fully everted and maximally expanded organ is bilobed, semicalyculate, noncapitate, and extends to the sixth subcaudal. Each lobe is ornamented with small calcified papillae, slightly larger on the asulcate and lateral sides and more scattered on the sulcate side. Some larger lobular papillae meet medially at the lobular crotch on the asulcate side. The sulcus spermaticus bifurcates on the proximal half of the body and its branches extend centrolineally to the tip of each lobe. The hemipenial body is ornamented with medium-sized calcified spines, except on the medial region of the asulcate side, where the spines are small. The spines increase in length towards the base of the hemipenial body, with one spine on the left side (sulcate view) being considerably longer than the others. The base of the hemipenial body bears much smaller and scattered spines.

Color in preservative of the holotype

(Figs 7, 8). Dorsal surface of head, body and tail uniformly dark grey; skin among dorsal scales cream, visible on anterior half of body; ventrals cream on anterior end of body (ventrals 1-5), becoming progressively pigmented with light grey posteriorly except on their margins; anal plate cream posteriorly and grey anteriorly; subcaudals with cream margins and same tone of grey as posterior ventrals; sides of head same tone of grey as dorsal surface, except for labials, which are mostly cream; chin cream with light grey anterior margin (most of mental and first two pairs of infralabials).

Variation.

Intraspecific variation in scale counts and measurements in Synophis zamora is presented in Table 3. Keeling on the first row of dorsals starts on ventrals 9, 10, and 105 in paratypes 9175, 13854, and 12773, respectively. No major differences were found between the hemipenis of the holotype and those of paratypes QCAZ 12773 and 13854. Coloration in life (QCAZ 13854; Fig. 5) is the same as that described for the holotype above, except that the cream color has a light yellow tint.

Distribution and natural history.

Synophis zamora occurs in the southeastern portion of the northern Andes in Cordillera del Cóndor and the Amazonian slopes of the Andes at elevations between 1543-1843 m (Fig. 6). It is known from localities close to the Bombuscaro and Nangaritza rivers, which are tributaries of the Zamora river. These localities lie in Ecuador within protected areas, such as Podocarpus National Park and Numbami Ecological Reserve, indicating that at least some populations of Synophis zamora are protected. All specimens were found active at night (20h30-00h00), mostly on the ground or on shrubs 1-1.5 m above ground. One specimen was found on a boulder covered with moss.

Etymology.

The epithet zamora is a noun in apposition and refers to both the Zamora river and the province of Zamora Chinchipe. All type specimens were collected in this province along the upper basin of Zamora river.