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| Oligodon hamptoni Boulenger, 1918 in Lee, Yang, Yushchenko & Poyarkov, 2021. |
Abstract
Oligodon hamptoni is a rare species of Kukri Snake known from only two specimens, both collected nearly a century ago in northern Myanmar. Here, we report the third record of this species based on a photograph taken in Mt. Gaoligongshan, Tengchong City, Yunnan Province, China, approximately 235 km northeast of the nearest record in Bhamo District, Kachin State, Myanmar. We also provide a detailed redescription of the holotype, showing that the photo record from Mt. Gaoligongshan can be unambiguously identified to this species. This rediscovery represents the first observation of O. hamptoni in China and is the first report of this species in almost 100 years.
Key Words: biodiversity, Gaoligongshan Nature Reserve, morphology, Myanmar, snakes, Squamata
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| Figure 4. Morphological comparison of the holotype specimen of Oligodon hamptoni (NHMUK 1946.1.1.71) with the newly recorded specimen from Baoshan, Yunnan Province, China. (A) Lateral and (B) dorsal aspects of the holotype specimen of Oligodon hamptoni (NHMUK 1946.1.1.71) from the original description (Boulenger, 1918); (C) dorsolateral aspect of the holotype specimen of Oligodon hamptoni (NHMUK 1946.1.1.71), photograph by Justin L. Lee; and (D) dorsolateral aspect of the Tengchong specimen (not collected), photograph by Zhuan-Yun Hu. |
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| Figure 3. Natural habitat (A) and a photo record (B) of Oligodon hamptoni in Tengchong City, Yunnan Province, China. Photographs by Zhuan-Yun Hu. |
Oligodon hamptoni Boulenger, 1918
Justin L. Lee, Jian-Huan Yang, Platon Yushchenko and Nikolay A. Poyarkov Jr. 2021. Rediscovery and Distribution Extension of the Rare Kukri Snake, Oligodon hamptoni Boulenger, 1918 (Reptilia, Serpentes, Colubridae), with the First Record of This Species from China. Herpetozoa. 34: 13-21. DOI: 10.3897/herpetozoa.34.e60875
