The status of the genus Leptodrymus Amaral, with comments on modifications of colubrid premaxillae

Title Variants

Alternative: Status of Leptodrymus Amaral

Related Titles

Series: American Museum novitates, no. 1352

By

Bogert, Charles M. (Charles Mitchill), 1908-1992

Type

Book

Material

Published material

Publication info

New York City, The American Museum of Natural History, [1947]

Notes

Title from caption.

"July 19, 1947."

"The genus Leptodrymus erected by Amaral in 1927 should be reinstated for the species pulcherrimus, since its superficial resemblances to snakes in Salvadora are not accompanied by similarities in penial, premaxillary, and scale characters. Various peculiarities serve to separate Leptodrymus from species in other genera, particularly the symmetrical arrangement of spines on the hemipenis, two of them greatly enlarged with the sulcus spermaticus in the middle. Moreover, the presence of three postoculars in pulcherrimus serves to differentiate the species from the allied genera. 2. The results of a brief survey of premaxillary characters point to their usefulness in systematic work. The shape of the premaxilla characterizes the snakes in the genus Salvadora, and use of the bone may be of aid in delineating other subfamily, generic, or infrageneric groups. Parallel modifications of the premaxilla in some burrowing snakes are pointed out, although it is plain that these do not seriously obscure the inferences with respect to relationships or phylogenies that may be drawn from comparisons of premaxillae"--P. 13.

Subjects

59.81,2C , Anatomy , Central America , Classification , Colubridae , Leptodrymus pulcherrimus , Maxilla , Reptiles , Salvadora (Genus) , Snakes

Call Number

QL1 .A436 no.1352, 1947

Language

English

Identifiers

OCLC: 31840143