Atractus emmeli

Atractus emmeli
Emmel's Ground Snake, Vaca Diez, Bolivia (2023)
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Colubridae
Genus:	Atractus
Species:	A. emmeli
Binomial name
Atractus emmeli (Boettger, 1888)
Synonyms[2]
Geophis emmeli Boettger, 1888 Atractus emmeli — Boulenger, 1894 Atractus boettgeri Boulenger, 1896 Atractus balzani Boulenger, 1898 Atractus taeniatus Griffin, 1916 Atractus paravertebralis Henle & Ehrl, 1991 Atractus occiptoalbus — Fugler & Cabot, 1995 Atractus emmeli — Nogueira et al., 2019

Atractus emmeli, also known commonly as Emmel's ground snake and Boettger's ground snake, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to northwestern South America.

Etymology

The specific name, emmeli, is in honor of Ferdinand Emmel who sent the first two specimens of this snake to German herpetologist Oskar Boettger, which Boettger described as a species new to science.^[3]

Geographic range

A. emmeli is found in Bolivia and Peru,^[2] east of the Andes.^[1]

Habitat

The preferred natural habitat of A. emmeli is forest, at altitudes of 134–360 m (440–1,181 ft), but it is also found in artificial habitats such as gardens and farms.^[1]

Description

A. emmeli may attain a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of about 38 cm (15 in) for females, and about 30 cm (12 in) for males. Dorsally, it is uniformly light brown, dark brown, or black. Often there is a whitish or tan band across the parietals, especially in juveniles. Ventrally, it is cream-colored, with black spots or dots. It has smooth dorsal scales, without apical pits. The dorsal scales are arranged in 15 rows throughout the length of the body (15/15/15). The ventrals number 154–187 in females, and 147–169 in males. The subcaudals number 14–25 in females, and 20–31 in males.^[2]

Behavior

A. emmeli is terrestrial and fossorial.^[1]

Reproduction

A. emmeli is oviparous.^[2]

References

1. Aguayo, R.; Aparicio, J.; Gonzales, L.; Cortez, C. (2016). "Atractus emmeli". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2016: e.T50951705A50951714. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T50951705A50951714.en. Retrieved 26 April 2023.
2. Atractus emmeli at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 8 October 2021.
3. 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. (Atractus emmeli, p. 83).

Further reading

• Boettger O (1888). "Beitrag zur Reptilfauna des oberen Beni in Bolivia". Bericht über die Senckenbergische Naturforschende Gesellschaft in Frankfurt am Main 1888: 191–199. (Geophis emmeli, new species, pp. 192–195, figure [three views of head]). (in German and Latin).
• Boulenger GA (1894). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume II. Containing the Conclusion of the Colubridæ Aglyphæ. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xi + 382 pp. + Plates I–XX. (Atractus emmeli, new combination, pp. 311–312).
• Freiberg M (1982). Snakes of South America. Hong Kong: T.F.H. Publications. 189 pp. ISBN 0-87666-912-7. (Atractus emmeli, p. 90).
• Passos P, Azevedo JAR, Nogueira CC, Fernandes R, Sawaya RJ (2019). "An Integrated Approach to Delimit Species in the Puzzling Atractus emmeli Complex (Serpentes: Dipsadidae)". Herpetological Monographs 33 (1): 1–25.