Leptotyphlops erythraeus Scortecci

Published, First, 2007, A revision of the genus Leptotyphlops in northeastern Africa and southwestern Arabia (Serpentes: Leptotyphlopidae), Zootaxa 1408, pp. 1-78 : 21

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.5281/zenodo.6789060

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6789109

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/A77887C2-FFC9-FFEE-FF02-80DA408FB041

treatment provided by

Felipe

scientific name

Leptotyphlops erythraeus Scortecci
status

 

Leptotyphlops erythraeus Scortecci ( Plate 7 View PLATE 7 . Fig. 2)

Eritrean worm snake

Glauconia cairi View in CoL — Steindachner, 1900: 333 (Dahlak Island).

Glauconia erythraea Scortecci, 1928 , Atti. Soc. Ital. Sci. Nat., Milano   GoogleMaps , 67: 293, fig. 2. Type locality: Massaua [=Massawa], Eritrea (15°37’N, 39°28’E, near sea level), holotype MSNM 3349 (formerly MSNM 1916), collected by F. Fatigati.

Leptotyphlops erythraeus — Parker, 1932a: 362; Hahn, 1980: 14; Trape, 2002: 49, fig. 10A; Wallach & Lanza 2004: 87.

Leptotyphlops erythraea — Parker, 1949: 21.

Leptotyphlop s sp. — Hoofien & Yaron, 1964: 38 (Entedebir Island).

Leptotyphlops cf. macrorhynchus — Lanza, 1972: 174 (Awash National Park).

Leptotyphlops macrorhynchus — Hahn, 1978: 482; Lanza, 1983: 220; Meirte, 1992: 15; Largen & Rasmussen, 1993: 324; Schleich et al., 1996: 476; Largen, 1997: 87; McDiarmid et al., 1999: 36.

Leptotyphlops cairi — Largen & Rasmussen, 1993: 324 (part); Largen, 1997: 87 (part).

Leptotyphlops nigricans — Largen & Rasmussen, 1993: 325 (part).

Leptotyphlops macrorhynchus macrorhynchus — Hahn & Wallach, 1998: 54.

Diagnosis. Close to Leptotyphlops nursii , but differs in having a more pronounced beak (extending below lip level), fewer subcaudals (perhaps without sexual dimorphism) and perhaps smaller maximum size (170 mm vs. 242 mm). Skull with a large frontoparietal foramen like L. cairi .

Description. Body cylindrical, with head broader slightly broader than neck, the short tail tapers slightly before a terminal cone.

Snout rounded, rostral moderate (0.38–0.53 head width, mean = 0.44), with nearly parallel sides, extending posteriorly to mideye level, posterior border in hexagonal configuration, broader than supranasals; ventral rostral with deep preoral cavity, lateral head profile with a weak blunt beak that extends below lip level, beak narrow ventrally. Behind rostral, upper lip bordered by infranasal (nostril midway between rostral and supralabial along nasal suture), small anterior supralabial that just reaches level of nostril with width along lip equal to that of infranasal, and moderate posterior supralabial. Frontal semilunate, more than twice as broad as deep, larger than supraoculars and postfrontal; interocular line along rostral-frontal suture; interparietal and interoccipital broader than frontal or postfrontal. Ocular slightly oblique, small eye with distict pupil beneath upper anterior border; parietals transverse, occipitals enlarged in type but occipitals not fused in other specimens; parietals transverse, in contact with posterior supralabial, occipitals fused and enlarged. Temporal single. Cloacal shield semilunate; no apical spine, tail terminating in a smooth cone. Prominent tubercles on all head shields except parietals and occipitals.

Body covered with 14 rows of smooth, imbricate, subequal scales, reducing to 12 rows on the tail. Middorsals 311–335; subcaudals 28–34.

Total length/diameter ratio 59–99; total length/tail length ratio 11.1–15.3.

Holotype uniformly pinkish-beige but other specimens light brown. A specimen from the Awash National Park ( BMNH 1977.2249 ) has the seven dorsal scale rows medium brown, chin and anterior venter pure white for the first 50 scales, rest of venter pale brown, subcaudals medium brown.

Size. Largest specimen (MZUF 12270 — Awash National Park, Ethiopia) 158.5 + 11.5 = 170 mm.

Distribution. The Red Sea coast of Eritrea and the Dahlak Archipelago, extending inland to the Awash National Park in eastern Ethiopia in the southwestern corner of the Afar depression (which until the mid-Pliocene was connected with southwestern Arabia — Parker, 1949; Leviton, 1986), 0–1000 m ( Plate 5 View PLATE 5 ).

Localities. ERITREA. Azzillek River, near Assab MZUF 30109; Dahlak Island (Steindachner, 1901); Entedebir Island TAU 13643; Massaua MSNM 3349. ETHIOPIA. Awash National Park BMNH 1971.767, 1977.2249; MZUF 12270.

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Reptilia

Order

Squamata

Family

Leptotyphlopidae

Genus

Leptotyphlops

Loc

Leptotyphlops erythraeus Scortecci

Published, First 2007
2007
Loc

Leptotyphlops macrorhynchus macrorhynchus

Hahn, D. & Wallach, V. 1998: 54
1998
Loc

Leptotyphlops cairi

Largen, M. J. 1997: 87
Largen, M. J. & Rasmussen, J. B. 1993: 324
1993
Loc

Leptotyphlops nigricans

Largen, M. J. & Rasmussen, J. B. 1993: 325
1993
Loc

Leptotyphlops macrorhynchus

McDiarmid, R. W. & Campbell, J. A. & Toure, T. A. 1999: 36
Largen, M. J. 1997: 87
Schleich, H. H. & Kastle, W. & Kabisch, K. 1996: 476
Largen, M. J. & Rasmussen, J. B. 1993: 324
Meirte, D. 1992: 15
Lanza, B. 1983: 220
Hahn, D. E. 1978: 482
1978
Loc

Leptotyphlops cf. macrorhynchus

Lanza, B. 1972: 174
1972
Loc

Leptotyphlops erythraea

Parker, H. W. 1949: 21
1949
Loc

Leptotyphlops erythraeus

Wallach, V. & Lanza, B. 2004: 87
Trape, J. - F. 2002: 49
Hahn, D. E. 1980: 14
Parker, H. W. 1932: 362
1932
Loc

Glauconia cairi

Steindachner, F. 1900: 333
1900
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