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| Apostolepis niceforoi Amaral, 1935 in Entiauspe-Neto, Rangel, Guedes & Tiutenko, 2020. |
Abstract
Apostolepis is a speciose Neotropical snake genus, encompassing 38 species, widely distributed in South America. Most species of the genus are known based on small series, which has contributed to a convoluted taxonomic history. In this study, we report the rediscovery of Apostolepis niceforoi, a taxon that remained known from a single specimen since its original description in 1935, providing a detailed redescription, with comments on putatively close congeners, as well as taxonomic misidentifications related to this species.
Key Words: Caenophidia; Colombia; Neotropical; Taxonomy.
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| Figure 1. Overview of Apostolepis niceforoi (ICN 10422) from Florencia, Caquetá department, Colombia. Photograph credits: Juan David Fernández. Scale bar = 5 mm. |
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| Figure 2. Pattern of Apostolepis niceforoi (ICN 10422). |
Apostolepis niceforoi Amaral, 1935
Diagnosis: Apostolepis niceforoi can be distinguished
from all its congeners by the following combination
of characters: (1) 15/15/15 smooth dorsal without
apical pits; (2) preocular single, contacting nasal; (3)
loreal absent; (4) temporals 0+1; (5) supralabials six,
with 2nd and 3rd in contact with orbit; (6) infralabials
six, with first four in contact with chinshield; (7) ventrals
246–248 (246 in the single male, 248 in female); (8)
subcaudals 21–23 pairs (21 in the single male, 23 in
female); (9) in preservative, dorsal pattern uniform
yellow, head dorsally yellow, frontals, supraoculars
and temporals with brown margin, tear shaped brown
blotch on supralabials 2–3, white supralabial blotch
large, covering most of supralabials 4–5, dorsal pattern
with five large (two rows) dark brown and two thin
(one row) lateral stripes, small black tail blotch, ventral
pattern uniform yellow.
Omar M. Entiauspe-Neto, Guido Fabian Medina Rangel , Thaís Barreto Guedes and Arthur Tiutenko. 2020. Raising of Lazarus: Rediscovery and Redescription of Apostolepis niceforoi Amaral, 1935 (Serpentes: Dipsadidae: Elapomorphini). Holotipus rivista di zoologia sistematica e tassonomia. I(2); 21-35.
