Number of Pages: 4Integrative BiologyGeological Science

Chiszar, David

Lemos-Espinal, Julio A.

Smith, Hobart M.

English

Number of Pages: 4Integrative BiologyEarth and Planetary Science

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REPTILIA: SERPENTES: COLUBRIDAE Procinura, R aemula Catalogue of American Amphibians and Reptiles. Smith, H.M., J.A. Lemos-Espinal, and D. Chiszar. 2006. Procinura, I? aemula. Procinura Cope Filetailed Snake Procinura Cope 1879:262. Type species Procinura aemula Cope 1879, by monotypy. CONTENT. Procinura is monotypic. DEFINITION. Procinura is a small species of snake with a maximum total length of 447 mm in fe- males, 373 mm in males. The tail lengthltotal length ratio is 0.13-0.1 5 in females, 0.1 6-0.22 in males. The scale rows are usually 15-1 5-1 5, but the posterior rows are sometimes 16 or 17 (36% of specimens). All scales of the tail except the subcaudals are keeled, the keels ending in a spur. Keels extend forward on the body only on the median 9 scale rows to a dis- tance no more than 2.5 tail lengths. The rest of the dorsals are smooth. The ventrals are 141-156 (mean = 149), 91%>149 in females, 30% in males. The sub- caudals are 34-45 (mean = 38), 8%>37 in females, 100% in males. The dorsal head scales are normal in number and size; the supralabials are usually 7 (14% of specimens have 8); the infralabials are nearly as equally 7 as 8. The preoculars are single, and the loreal is also single with rare exceptions. Two postoc- ulars are present, and the temporals are 1-2 on each side. The posterior chinshields are separated, half or less the size of the anterior chinshields, and in con- tact with a single (4th) infralabial. The pattern is tricolored at least on the head and neck, with or without triads on body and/or tail; the snout is usually pale, but otherwise the top of the head is black, followed by a yellow, then a black band, each 2-3 scales in length. The rest of the body and tail is basically red, with 0-11 triads of black and yellow of varied arrangement on the body, 0-3 on the tail. DIAGNOSIS. The combination of small size, red body usually with black and yellow rings, and strong- ly keeled scales on the tail and rear part of the other- wise smooth-scaled body, is diagnostic. ILLUSTRATIONS, DISTRIBUTION, FOSSIL RECORD, and PERTINENT LITERATURE. See species account. ETYMOLOGY. The generic name was derived from the Greek word "ovRA" (tail) and the Latin word "procinctus" (armored), and refers to the heavy keels on the tail, which Cope assumed functioned in bur- rowing. It is quite likely, however, that the spines and keels on the tail function to deter predation, as indi- cated by behavior. When startled, if the snake does not flee, it coils and hides the head, exposing the tail with its apparently deterrent structure. Procinura aemula Cope Filetailed Snake Procinura =mula Cope 1879:262. Type-locality, "Batopilas, Chihuahua", Mexico. Holotype, Acad- emy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (ANSP) 11 641, an adult male, collected by E. Wilkinson at some time between 1873 and 1875. Contia aemula: Garman 1884b.92. Scolecophis aemulus: Cope 1900:1109. Scolecophis aemulae: Gadow 1 905:225. Lapsus. Sonora aemula: Bogert and Oliver 1945:371. Procinura aenula: Maldonado-Koerdel 1953:124. Lapsus. CONTENT. No subspecies have been proposed. DEFINITION and DIAGNOSIS. See generic ac- count. Figure 1. Procinura aemula, Batopilas, Chihuahua. Photo by J.A. Lemos-Espinal. DESCRIPTIONS. Notable descriptions are in Cope (1 879, 1900), Garman (1 884b), Gijnther (1 895), Boulenger (1 896), Bogert and Oliver (1 945), Zweifel and Norris (1 955), Webb (1 960), Nickerson and Heringhi (1966), Hardy and McDiarmid (1969), McDiarmid et al. (1976), Hale (1990), and Lemos- Espinal et al. (2004b). ILLUSTRATIONS. Bogert and Oliver (1945) pub- lished excellent drawings of the head and maxilla of a specimen from Guirocoba, Sonora. Color photo- graphs are in Leetz (1983), Coburn (1991), Campbell and Lamar (2004), Lemos-Espinal et al. (2004b), and Van Devender and Ferguson (2004). A drawing of the hemipenis is in Cope (1 895, 1900). DISTRIBUTION. Procinura aemula is distributed in humid and semiarid semitropical and tropical for- ests at 50-750 m in southeastern Sonora as far north as the Tonichi-Y6cora transect (Nevares and Parra- Salazar 1991, Van Devender and Ferguson 2004), and southward through southwestern Chihuahua to southern Sinaloa as far south as 65 km S Mazatldn. FOSSIL RECORD. None. Map. Locality records for Procinura aemula. The cir- cle indicates the type-locality. PERTINENT LITERATURE. Information in the liter- ature, other than that previously cited, may be sum- marized as follows: anatomy and physiology (Bogert and Oliver 1945, Cope 1879, 1895, 1900, Greene 1997, Ocaranza 1930, Phisalix 1922, and Schwaner and Dessauer 1982); behavior (Echter- nacht 1973, Goin and Goin 1962, Greene 1988, 1997, Hecht and Marien 1956, and Mertens 1956); checklists and similar compendia (Amaral 1929, Casas-Andreu and McCoy 1979, Cope 1885, 1886, 1887, 1896, Flores-Villela and Gerez-Fernandez 1988, 1994, Frank and Ramus 1995, Gadow 1905, 1911, Garman 1884a, Lemos-Espinal et al. 2004c, Liner 1994, Maldonado-Koerdell 1953, Malnate 1971, Smith 1987, Smith and Smith 1976, 1993, Smith and Taylor 1945, 1950, Sokolov 1988, Wallach 1988, Werner 1925, and Williams and Wallach 1989); diet (Hardy and McDiarmid 1969); ecology and distribu- tion (Flores-Villela 1993, Flores-Villela and Gerez- Fernandez 1988, 1994, Lemos-Espinal et al. 2004a, Nevarres and Parra 1991, Smith et al. 2005, and Webb 1984); herpetoculture (Coburn 1991, Markel 1989, Obst et al. 1988, Slavens 1980, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1989, and Slavens and Slavens (1990); phylogeny and systematics (Bogert and Oliver 1945, Frost 1983, Lemos-Espinal et al. 2004a,b, Stickel 1943, and Williams and Wallach 1989); repro- duction (Goldberg 2003, Hawkins 1999, and Zweifel and Norris 1955). REMARKS. Although originally described from Chihuahua, the species was not again recorded from the state until 2004 (Lemos-Espinal et al. 2004a), al- though by then it had been recorded several times in the adjacent states of Sonora and Sinaloa. The redis- covery was at the type locality, and as yet it is known only from four closely associated localities in the state. Only a single specimen had been reported be- fore 1945. It is now regarded as relatively common in southwestern Chihuahua and adjacent Sonora. The strange spurs on the tail are not known to occur in any other species of American snake but, as point- ed out by Greene (1997), they are present in another species of burrowing snake, Aspidelaps scutatus, of southern Africa. ETYMOLOGY. The specific name is from the Latin word "aemulor" (emulation). Cope (1879) re- marked on the extensive similarity of pattern to that of "Elaps fulvius." The sympatric coral snakes, Mi- cruroides euryxanthus australis and Micrurus d. dis- tans, do have patterns similar to that of most P. aem- ula (Roze 1 996). COMMENT. The species was originally described in the monotypic genus Procinura, and it was so ac- cepted until 1945, when Bogert and Oliver argued that it was insufficiently distinct from its close relative Sonora to merit separation from it. Stickel (1943), long a specialist in the systematics of Sonora, had re- cognized the close relationship of the two taxa, but still accepted Procinura as valid on the bases of the keels and spines on the caudal scales, and the pat- tern "developed along a different line than that seen in any described form of Sonora." Lemos-Espinal et al. (2004b) revived Procinura on the same grounds; the blunt tail scale and different habits and behavior (see Etymology) support the distinction. The gener- ic name Procinura has been used at least 16 times in the literature from 1945 to 2004. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. Dr. E.A. Liner kindly provided some recent references pertinent to Pro- cinura. JLE was supported by grants from DGAPA- PASPA and CONABIO in the field and during his sab- batical leave; the University of Colorado, through the Department of Environmental and Evolutionary Biol- ogy, provided support for him during his stay there, as well as to HMS. We are very grateful to the editor, Dr. L.D. Wilson, for his thorough improvement of the account. LITERATURE CITED Amaral, A. do. 1929. Estudios s6bre ophidios neo- tropicos. XVIII. Lista remissiva dos ophidios da regieo neotropica. Mem. Inst. Butantan 4:129- 271. Bogert, C.M. and J.A. Oliver. 1945. A preliminary analysis of the herpetofauna of Sonora. Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist. 83:297-426. Boulenger, G.A. 1896. Catalogue of the snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Vol. Ill. Trust- ees of the British Museum (Nat. Hist.), London. Campbell, J.A. and W.W. Lamar. 2004. The Venom- ous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere. Com- stock Publ. Assoc., Ithaca, New York. Casas-Andreu, G. and C.J. McCoy. 1979. Anfibios y reptiles de Mexico. Limusa, Mexico. Coburn, J. 1991. The Atlas of the Snakes of the World. T.F.H. Publ., Neptune City, New Jersey. Cope, E.D. 1879. Eleventh contribution to the herpe- tology of tropical America. Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. 18:261-277. -. 1885. Twelfth contribution to the herpetology of Tropical America. Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. 22:167- 194. -. 1886. An analytical table of the genera of snakes. Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. 23:479499. -. 1887. Catalogue of batrachians and reptiles of Central America and Mexico. Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus. 3211-98. -. 1895. The classification of the Ophidia. Trans. Am. Philos. Soc. 18:186-219. -. 1896. The geographical distribution of Batrachia and Reptilia in North America. Am. Nat. 30:886- 902, 1003-1 026. -. 1900. The crocodilians, lizards and snakes of North America. Ann. Rep. U.S. Natl. Mus. 1898: 153-1 270. Echternacht, A.C. 1973. The color pattern of Sonora michoacanensis (Duges) (Serpentes, Colubridae) and its bearing on the origin of the species. Breviora (41 0):l-18. Flores-Villela, O.A. 1993. Herpetofauna Mexicana: annotated list of the species of amphibians and reptiles of Mexico, recent taxonomic changes, and new species. Carnegie Mus. Nat. Hist. Spec. Publ. (1 7):iv + 73 p. - and P. Gerez-Fernandez. 1988. Conservation en Mexico: sintesis sobre vertebrados terestres, vegetacion y uso del suelo. Xalapa, Veracruz. Inst. Nac. Invest. Recursos Bioticos, Mexico. - and -. 1994. Biodiversidad y conservacion en Mexi- co: vertebrados, vegetacion y uso del suelo. CONABIO and UNAM, Mexico, D.F. Frank, N, and E. Ramus. 1995. A Complete Guide to Scientific and Common Names of Reptiles and Amphibians of the World. NG Publ. Co., Pottsville, Pennsylvania. Frost, D.R. 1983. Relationships of the Baja California ground snakes, genus Sonora. Trans. Kansas Acad. Sci. 86:31-37. Gadow, H.F. 1905. The distribution of Mexican am- phibians and reptiles. Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. 1905:191-245. -. 1911. lsotely and coral snakes. Zool. Jb. 31 :1-24. Garman, S. 1884a. The North American reptiles and batrachians. A list of the species occurring north of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, with references. Bull. Essex Inst. 16:1-46. -. 1884b [1883]. The reptiles and batrachians of North America. Mem. Mus. Comp. Zool., Harvard (8):xxxiv + 185 p. Goin, C.J. and O.B. Goin. 1962. Introduction to her- petology. W.H. Freeman and Co., San Francisco. Goldberg, S. R. 2003. Sonora aemula (File-tailed Ground Snake). Reproduction. Herpetol. Rev. 34: 73-74. Greene, H.W. 1988. Antipredator mechanisms in rep- tiles, p. 1-152. In C. Gans and R.B. Huey (eds.), Biology of the Reptilia, Vo1.16, Ecology B. Defen- se and Life History. A.R. Liss, Inc., New York. -. 1997. Snakes: the Evolution of Mystery in Nature. Univ. California Press, Berkeley. Gunther, A.C.L.G. 1885-1902. Biologia Centrali- Americana. 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Liner, E.A. 1994. Scientific and common names for the amphibians and reptiles of Mexico in English and Spanish. Nombres cientificos y comunes en lngles y EspaAol de 10s anfibios y reptiles de Mexico. SSAR Herpetol. Circ. (23):v + 11 3 p. Maldonado-Koerdell, M. 1953. Amphibians, reptiles, p. 107-1 33. In E. Beltran (ed.), Vida silvestre y recursos naturales a lo largo de la carretera pan- americana. Inst. Mexicano de Recursos Natural- es Renovables, Mexico, D.F. Malnate, E.V. 1971. A catalog of primary types in the herpetological collections of the Academy of Nat- ural Sciences, Philadelphia (ANSP). Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 123:345-375. Markel, R.G. 1989. King Snakes and Milk Snakes. T.F.H. Publ., Neptune City, New Jersey. McDiarmid, R.W., J.F. Copp, and D.E. Breedlove. 1976. Notes on the herpetofauna of western Mex- ico: new records from Sinaloa and the Tres Mar- ias Islands. Contrib. Sci. Los Angeles Co. Nat. Hist. Mus. (275):l-17. Mertens, R. 1956. 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Current nomenclature for the names and material cited in Gunther's Reptilia and Batrachia volume of the Biologia Centrali- Americana, p. xxiii-li. In SSAR reprint of A.C.L.G. Gunther, Biologia Centrali-Americana, Reptilia and Batrachia. -, J.A. Lemos-Espinal, and P. Heimes. 2005. 2005 amphibians and reptiles from northwestern Mex- ico. Bull. Chicago Herpetol. Soc. 40:206-212. - and R.B. Smith. 1976. Synopsis of the Herpeto- fauna of Mexico. Vol. Ill. Source Analysis and Index for Mexican Reptiles. John Johnson, North Bennington, Vermont. - and -. 1993. Synopsis of the Herpetofauna of Mex- ico. Vol. VII. Bibliographic Addendum IV and In- dex, Bibliographic Addenda Il-IV 1979-1 991. Univ. Press of Colorado, Niwot, Colorado. - and E.H. Taylor. 1945. An annotated checklist and key to the snakes of Mexico. Bull. U.S. Natl. Mus. (167):iv + 239 p. -and -. 1950. Type localities of Mexican reptiles and amphibians. Kansas Univ. Sci. Bull. 33: 313-380. Sokolov, V.E. (ed.). 1988. Dictionary of Animal Names in Five Languages. Amphibians and Rep- tiles. Russky Yazyk Publ., Moscow. Stickel, W.H. 1943. The Mexican snakes of the genus Sonora and Chionactis with notes on the status of other colubrid genera. Proc. Biol. Soc. Washing- ton 56:109-128. Van Devender, T.R. and G.M. Ferguson. 2004. Re- search in the Sierra Madre Occidental in eastern Sonora, Mexico. Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum Web Page http://www.desertmuseum.org/pro- grams/yecors-fauna.html. Wallach, V. 1988. Status and redescription of the ge- nus Padangia Werner, with comparative visceral data on Collorhabdium Smedley and other genera (Serpentes: Colubridae). Amphib.-Rept. 9: 61-76. Webb, R.G. 1960. Notes on some amphibians and reptiles from northern Mexico. Trans. Kansas Acad. Sci. 63:289-298. -. 1984. Herpetogeography in the Mazatlan-Durango region of the Sierra Madre Occidental, Mexico, p. 217-241. In R.A. Seigel, L.E. Hunt, J.L. Knight, L. Malaret, and N.L. Zuschlag (eds.), Vertebrate ecology and systematics: a tribute to Henry S. Fitch. Univ. Kansas Mus. Nat. Hist. Spec. Publ. (10). Werner, F. 1925. Uebersicht der Gattungen und Arten der Schlangen der Familie Colubridae. II. Teil (Dipsadomorphinae und Hydrophiinae). Arch. Naturg. 90 (Abt. A, Heft 12):108-166. Williams, K.L. and V. Wallach. 1989. Snakes of the World. Vol. I. Synopsis of snake generic names. Krieger Publ. Co., Malabar, Florida. Zweifel, R.G. and K.S. Norris. 1955. Contribution to the herpetology of Sonora, Mexico: descriptions of new subspecies of snakes (Micrurus euryxan- thus and Lampropeltis getulus) and miscella- neous collecting notes. Amer. Midl. Nat. 54:230- 249. Hobart M. Smith, Department of EE Biology, Uni- versity of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0334 USA (hsmith@colorado.edu); Julio A. Lemos-Espi- nal, Laboratorio de Ecologia, UBIPRO, Facultad de Estudios Superiores Iztacala, UNAM, Apartado Pos- tal 31 4, Avenida de 10s Barrios 1, Los Reyes Iztacala, Tlalnepantla, edo. de Mexico, 54090 Mexico (lemos @servidor.unam.mx); and David Chiszar, Depart- ment of Psychology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0345 (david.chiszar@colorado.edu). Primary editor for this account, Larry David Wilson. Published 15 February 2006 and Copyright O 2006 by the Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 

Procinura, P. aemula

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Procinura, P. aemula

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