Ptyas carinata
Commonly known as the keeled rat snake,[2][3] Ptyas carinata is a species of colubrid snake. It is found in Indonesia, Myanmar, Malaysia, Thailand, Philippines, Cambodia, Vietnam and Singapore.[4] This little known species is probably the largest extant species in the diverse colubrid family that comprised just over half of living snake species. Known adult lengths of snakes of this species in Taiwan measured anywhere from 1.21 to 2.75 m (4 ft 0 in to 9 ft 0 in).[5] However, the maximum reportedly size was about 4 m (13 ft 1 in).[6] Males reportedly average slightly larger than females.[7] They are probably opportunistic predators on a variety of prey, such as rodents, though adult lizards are thought to be significant prey in Indonesia.[8]
Keeled Rat Snake | |
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Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Suborder: | Serpentes |
Family: | Colubridae |
Genus: | Ptyas |
Species: | P. carinatus |
Binomial name | |
Ptyas carinatus (Günther, 1858) | |
Synonyms | |
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References
- Wogan, G.; Chan-Ard, T.; Nguyen, T.Q.; Diesmos, A.C. & Auliya, M. (2012). "Ptyas carinata". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2012: e.T177503A1489928. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012-1.RLTS.T177503A1489928.en.
- "Ptyas carinata (Günther, 1858)". ubio.org. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
- "Ptyas carinata". Animal Diversity Web. Retrieved 13 August 2014.
- Ptyas carinata at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 13 August 2014.
- Wang, C. & Wang, J.H.M. (1956). The reptiles of Taiwan. J. Taiwan Mus. 9.
- Das, I. (2015). A field guide to the reptiles of South-East Asia. Bloomsbury Publishing.
- Taub, A. M. (1967). Comparative histological studies on Duvernoy's gland of colubrid snakes. Bulletin of the AMNH; v. 138, article 1.
- Huang, W. (2003). Reptile ecology and the evolution of parental care on a tropical Asian island. Cornell University.
External links
- Photo by Noel Thomas - MacRitchie North Central Catchment Nature Reserve, Singapore
- Photo by John Varigos - Mt Rimau, Sipitang - Malaysia
- Species of Doi Suthep-Pui National Park
- Ptyas carinata in Thailand