Current Herpetology

Original articles

A New Species of the Genus Geoemyda (Chelonii: Geoemydidae) from the Upper Pleistocene of Tokunoshima Island, the Central Ryukyus, Japan

Akio TAKAHASHI, Takafumi KATO, Hidetoshi OTA

2007 Volume 26 Issue 1 Pages 1-11
Published: 2007
Released on J-STAGE: July 11, 2007

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.3105/1345-5834(2007)26[1:ANSOTG]2.0.CO;2

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Turtle fossils discovered from the putative Upper Pleistocene fissure-filling deposit on Tokunoshima Island of the Amami Group is described as a new species, Geoemyda amamiensis (Chelonii: Geoemydidae). These fossils include a carapace exclusive of peripherals and a few other elements, fragments of a neural, a costal, eight peripherals, an anterior half of the plastron, two epiplastra, and an incomplete right humerus. Geoemyda amamiensis most resembles G. japonica, an extant species endemic to three islands of the Okinawa Group, but is distinguished from the latter by the presence in dorsal view of a short anterior projection in the entoplastron. These two species seem to have split from each other through vicariance within the central Ryukyus.

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A Comparative Morphological Study of the Vertebrae of Snakes Occurring in Japan and Adjacent Regions

Tadahiro IKEDA

2007 Volume 26 Issue 1 Pages 13-34
Published: 2007
Released on J-STAGE: July 11, 2007

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.3105/1345-5834(2007)26[13:ACMSOT]2.0.CO;2

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A comparative study was carried out on the vertebral morphology of 54 species and subspecies of snakes from Japan and a few other East and Southeast Asian countries. My purpose was to establish a character table for identification of Cenozoic fossil snake vertebrae frequently found in these regions. A total of 29 taxonomically useful characters were recognized. The validity of the vertebral features previously proposed to diagnose various snake taxa is examined on the basis of the present results.

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A New Opisthotropis (Serpentes: Colubridae: Natricinae) from Northeastern Thailand

Bryan L. STUART, Yodchaiy CHUAYNKERN

2007 Volume 26 Issue 1 Pages 35-40
Published: 2007
Released on J-STAGE: July 11, 2007

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.3105/1345-5834(2007)26[35:ANOSCN]2.0.CO;2

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A new species of the aquatic natricine colubrid snake genus Opisthotropis is described based on a single specimen from Nong Khai Province, northeastern Thailand. The new species is distinguished from other Opisthotropis by the combination of having smooth scales on the body and tail, 15 dorsal scale rows throughout the body, the fourth supralabial in contact with the eye, the posterior pair of chin shields longer than the anterior pair, and a glossy black dorsum with yellow spots.

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Short notes

Oviposition and Hatchling Diet of a Snail-eating Snake Pareas iwasakii (Colubridae: Pareatinae)

Masaki HOSO

2007 Volume 26 Issue 1 Pages 41-43
Published: 2007
Released on J-STAGE: July 11, 2007

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.3105/1345-5834(2007)26[41:OAHDOA]2.0.CO;2

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Pareas iwasakii, a rare pareatine snake endemic to Japan, is considered a dietary specialist on land snails. I observed the oviposition and hatchling diet of this species in captivity. One female laid six eggs on 30 September, and one of these eggs hatched on 26 November 2004. The hatchling fed on the soft body of juvenile land snails, leaving empty shells, most likely by extracting the former from the latter using its mandibles as do the adult snakes. This observation suggests that the dietary habits of P. iwasakii do not exhibit ontogenetic changes.

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Rediscovery of Mictopholis austeniana (Annandale, 1908) (Squamata: Agamidae)

Abhijit DAS, Indraneil DAS

2007 Volume 26 Issue 1 Pages 45-47
Published: 2007
Released on J-STAGE: July 11, 2007

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.3105/1345-5834(2007)26[45:ROMAAS]2.0.CO;2

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The poorly-known agamid lizard, Mictopholis austeniana, hitherto known from the unique holotype collected nearly a century ago from “Hills near Harmatti” (in Arunachal Pradesh, Northeast India), is reported from two sites in Arunachal Pradesh. The colouration of a live specimen is described and the species illustrated in colour for the first time.

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Oviposition and Early Growth of Unfed Neonates of the Mountain Wolf Snake Lycodon ruhstrati ruhstrati (Squamata: Colubridae)

Gerrut NORVAL, Jean-Jay MAO, Hsin-Pin CHU

2007 Volume 26 Issue 1 Pages 49-51
Published: 2007
Released on J-STAGE: July 11, 2007

DOIhttps://doi.org/10.3105/1345-5834(2007)26[49:OAEGOU]2.0.CO;2

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A captive female mountain wolf snake (Lycodon ruhstrati ruhstrati) from Taiwan laid ten eggs (length=35.22 mm, width=10.08 mm, and mass=2.5 g on average) on 26 August 2002. Eight of these eggs hatched after 49 days, and six hatchlings survived. During the first month, these surviving neonates (snout-vent length [SVL]= 156.8 mm, tail length [TL]=56.9 mm, and body mass [BM]=2.2 g on average at hatching), left unfed, grew in average by 10.4% in SVL and 8.5% in TL, but lost 13.8% of BM. Another Taiwanese female, collected on 18 February 2006 as a road-kill, had eight eggs in the oviducts.

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