Oligodon

<i>Oligodon</i>

Oligodon

Genus of snakes

Oligodon is genus of colubrid snakes that was first described by Austrian zoologist Leopold Fitzinger in 1826.[1] This genus is widespread throughout central and tropical Asia. The snakes of this genus are commonly known as kukri snakes.[3]

Quick Facts Oligodon, Scientific classification ...

Description

The species in the genus Oligodon are egg eaters and are usually under 90 cm (35 in) in total length (including tail). Different species display widely variable patterns and colorations. They subsist mostly by scavenging the eggs of birds and reptiles. Besides eggs, species of this genus also feeds on lizards, frogs, and small rodents.

Oligodon is a rear-fanged snake genus. All member species have a set of enlarged teeth placed in the back of the upper jaws, as well as functional Duvernoy's glands. They are not dangerous to humans, though. Bites by some species have been reported to bleed excessively, suggesting presence of anticoagulants in the Duvernoy's gland secretions.[4] Species of Oligodon are mostly nocturnal, and live on the floor of mature forests.

The common name of the genus comes from the kukri, a distinctively shaped Nepalese knife, which is similar in shape to the broad, flattened, curved hind teeth of Oligodon species. These teeth are specially adapted for their main diet of eggs; the teeth cut open eggs as they are being swallowed by the snake, allowing for easier digestion.

Species

There are 84 recognized species in the genus Oligodon according to Reptile Database as of April 2023.[2]

The source column gives direct links to the sources used:

EX - Extinct, EW - Extinct in the Wild
CR - Critically Endangered, EN - Endangered, VU - Vulnerable
NT - Near Threatened, LC - Least Concern
DD - Data Deficient, NE - Not Evaluated

Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Oligodon.

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References

  1. [1]
    Fitzinger LJ (1826). Neue Classification der Reptilien nach ihren natürlichen Verwandtschaften. Nebst einer Verwandtschafts-tafel und einem Verzeichnisse der Reptilien-Sammlung des K. K. zoologischen Museums zu Wien. Vienna: J.G. Heubner. five unnumbered + 67 pp. + one plate. (Oligodon, new genus, p. 56). (in German and Latin).
  2. [2]
    "Search results Genus: Oligodon – Exact match". Reptile Database. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  3. [3]
    David P; Vogel G; Pauwels OSG (2008). "A new species of the genus Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 (Squamata: Colubridae) from northern Vietnam, southern China and central Laos" (PDF). Zootaxa. 1939: 19–37. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.1939.1.3.
  4. [4]
    Wüster W, Cox MJ (1992). "Defensive hemipenis display in the kukri snake Oligodon cyclurus ". Journal of Herpetology. 26 (2): 238–241. doi:10.2307/1564874. JSTOR 1564874.
  5. [5]
    Bombay Natural History Society (2005). Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. Bombay Natural History Society. p. 21. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
  6. [6]
    Leong TM, Grismer LL (2004). "A new species of kukri snake, Oligodon (Colubridae), from Pulau Tioman, West Malaysia" (PDF). Asiatic Herpetological Research. 10: 12–16. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-05-06.
  7. [7]
    Mirza, Zeeshan A.; Bhardwaj, Virender Kumar; Patel, Harshil (2021). "A New Species of the Genus Oligodon Boie in Fitzinger, 1826 (Reptilia, Serpentes) from the Western Himalayas". Evolutionary Systematics 5 (2): 335–345. (Oligodon churahensis, new species).
  8. [8]
    Akonda, A.W.; Khan, M.A.; Khan, S.M.M.H.; Haque, M.N.; Khan, M.M.H.; Ahmed, R.; Ameen, M.; Islam, M.A.; Joarder, N.B.; Nishat, A. (2000). Red book of threatened mammals of Bangladesh. IUCN Bangladesh. p. 29. ISBN 978-984-746-004-8. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
  9. [9]
    David P, Vogel G, van Rooijen J (2008). "A revision of the Oligodon taeniatus (Günther, 1861) group (Squamata: Colubridae), with the description of three new species from the Indochinese Region" (PDF). Zootaxa. 1965: 1–49. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.1965.1.1.
  10. [10]
    Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Oligodon everetti, p. 86).
  11. [11]
    Beolens et al. (2011). p. 91.
  12. [12]
    Pauwels, Olivier S. G.; Larsen, Henning; Suthanthangjai, Winai; David, Patrick; Sumontha, Montri (2017). "A new kukri snake (Colubridae: Oligodon) from Hua Hin District, and the first record of O. Deuvei from Thailand". Zootaxa. 4291 (3): 531. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4291.3.6.
  13. [13]
    Pauwels OSG, Wallach V, David P, Chanhome L (2002). "A new species of Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 (Serpentes, Colubridae) from southern peninsular Thailand". Natural History Journal of Chulalongkorn University. 2 (2): 7–18.
  14. [14]
    Neang T, Grismer LL, Daltry JC (2012). "A new species of kukri snake (Colubridae: Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826) from the Phnom Samkos Wildlife Sanctuary, Cardamom Mountains, southwest Cambodia Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine". Zootaxa 3388: 41–55.
  15. [15]
    Acharji MN, Ray HC (1936). "A new species of Oligodon from the United Provinces (India)". Records of the Indian Museum, Calcutta 38: 519–520.
  16. [16]
    Beolens et al. (2011). p. 149.
  17. [17]
    Beolens et al. (2011). p. 183.
  18. [18]
    David P, Nguyen TQ, Nguyen TT, Jiang K, Chen T, Teynié A, Ziegler T (2012). "A new species of the genus Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 (Squamata: Colubridae) from northern Vietnam, southern China and central Laos". Zootaxa. 3498: 45–62. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3498.1.3.
  19. [19]
    Beolens et al. (2011). pp. 70, 205.
  20. [20]
    Beolens et al. (2011). p. 231.
  21. [21]
    Sumontha, Montri; Kunya, Kirati; Dangsri, Siriwat; Pauwels, Olivier S. G. (2017). "Oligodon saiyok, a new limestone-dwelling kukri snake (Serpentes: Colubridae) from Kanchanaburi Province, western Thailand". Zootaxa. 4294 (3): 316. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4294.3.2.

Further reading

  • Green, Marc D.; Orlov, Nikolai L.; Murphy, Robert W. (2010). "Toward a Phylogeny of the Kukri Snakes, Genus Oligodon ". Asian Herpetological Research 2 (1): 1-21.
  • Smith MA (1943). The Fauna of British India, Ceylon and Burma, Including the Whole of the Indo-Chinese Sub-region. Reptilia and Amphibia. Vol. III.—Serpentes. London: Secretary of State for India. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xii + 583 pp. (Genus Oligodon, pp. 195–201).
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