Dendrelaphis tristis | |
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Conservation status | |
Least Concern (IUCN 3.1) | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Reptilia |
Order: | Squamata |
Suborder: | Serpentes |
Family: | Colubridae |
Subfamily: | Ahaetuliinae |
Genus: | Dendrelaphis |
Species: | D. tristis |
Binomial name | |
Dendrelaphis tristis (Daudin, 1803) |
Dendrelaphis tristis (Common bronzeback or Daudin's bronzeback) is a species of colubrid tree-snake found in South Asia. It is not venomous, and harmless to humans.
Taxonomy
Dendrelaphis tristis belongs to the genus Dendrelaphis, which contains 48 other described species.
Dendrelaphis is one of five genera belonging to the vine snake subfamily Ahaetuliinae, of which Dendrelaphis is most closely related to Chrysopelea, as shown in the cladogram below:
Ahaetuliinae |
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Distribution
Dendrelaphis tristis is found in Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, Pakistan, and Bhutan, although its presence is uncertain in Myanmar, Bhutan, and Pakistan.
Habitat
It is diurnal and fully arboreal. It lives in various types of forests, from dry deciduous to semi-evergreen, and has even been reported in urban gardens and parks.
Description
Dendrelaphis tristis is a long, slender snake with a pointed head and a bronze-coloured line running right down its back. It is camouflaged among the leaves because of its uniform ruddy brown skin.
Diet
Its diet includes geckos, garden lizards, frogs, and small birds. It is not venomous, and harmless to humans.
Reproduction
The snake has oviparous (egg laying) reproduction, and lays 6-8 eggs in April in tree hollows and rotting vegetation.
Gallery
- Head seen dorso-laterally
- In Sri Lanka
- Bronzeback eating a frog
- Common Bronzeback at Bardiya National Park, Nepal
References
- ^ Wickramasinghe, L.J.M.; Ganesh, S.R. (2021). "Dendrelaphis tristis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2021: e.T172608A1351149. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
- Genus Dendrelaphis at The Reptile Database.
- Mallik, Ashok Kumar; Achyuthan, N. Srikanthan; Ganesh, Sumaithangi R.; Pal, Saunak P.; Vijayakumar, S. P.; Shanker, Kartik (27 July 2019). "Discovery of a deeply divergent new lineage of vine snake (Colubridae: Ahaetuliinae: Proahaetulla gen. nov.) from the southern Western Ghats of Peninsular India with a revised key for Ahaetuliinae". PLOS ONE. 14 (7): e0218851. Bibcode:2019PLoSO..1418851M. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0218851. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 6636718. PMID 31314800.
- ^ Species Dendrelaphis tristis at The Reptile Database
Further reading
- Boulenger, George A. 1890 The Fauna of British India, Including Bangladesh, Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Batrachia. Taylor & Francis, London, xviii, 541 pp.
- Daudin, F. M. 1803 Histoire Naturelle Generale et Particuliere des Reptiles. Vol. 6. F. Dufart, Paris.
Taxon identifiers | |
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Dendrelaphis tristis |
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