257 



REPTILIA: SERPENTES: COLUBRIDAE -^ "A: PSEUSTES 



PSEUSTES Fitzinger 



1843 Thamnob i us Fitzinger (preoccupied by Thamnob i us Schoenherr, 1836)j Systema Reptilium: 26. Type- 

 species: Coluber poec i los toma Wied. 



1843 Pseustes Fitzinger, Systema Reptilium: 27. Type-species: D i psas D ieper i nk i i Schlegel. 



1862 Phrynonax Cope, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1862: 3*8. Type-species: Trop i dod ipsas lunulata 

 Cope. 



1322 Paraphrvnonax Lutz and Mello, Folha Medica, 3 ( I920): 97' Type-spec i es: Paraphrynonax vers icolor 

 Lutz and Mello. 



Distribution: Central America; northern and central South America. 



Content: Four species. 



Key to the species Clave de especies 



1. Lower rows of dorsal scales usually without 1. Las hileras mas bajas de escamas dorsales 



keels; usually two postoculars; no subocular usualmente sin quillas; usualmente dos post- 

 scales 2 oculares; sin escamas suboculares 2 



All dorsals keeled except first row; usually Todas las dorsales quilladas excepto la 

 three postoculars; suboculars present or primera hilera; usualmente tres postoculares; 



absent sulphureus con sin cuboculares sulphureus 



2. Ventrals weakly angulate; no longitudinal line 2. Ventrales ligeramente angulados; sin 1 'nea 



of color on ventrals 3 longitudinal coloreada en ventrales 3 



Ventrals strongly angulate; longitudinal dark Ventrales fuertemente angulados; I'nea longi- 



line along angles of ventrals sexcar inatus tudinal oscura a lo largo de las ventrales 



sexcar i na tus 



3. Dorsum irregularly barred with yellow, or each J, Dorso con barras irregulares amarillas o cada 

 scale with yellow center and black margin escama con centro amarillo y borde negro- 



- shropsh i re i shropsh i re i 



Dorsum other than above description Dorso distinto del descripto poec i lonotus 



- poec i lonotus 



PSEUSTES POECILONOTUS (Cunther) 



I858 Sp i lotes poec i lonotus Gunther, Cat. Sn. Brit. Mus.: 100. Type-locality: Honduras and Mexico; 



restricted to Honduras through lectotype selection by Boulenger, Cat. Sn. Brit. Mus., 2, 1894, 



20. 

 1937 Pseustes [ poeci lonotus ] — Brongersma, Zool. Meded., 20: 6. 



Distribution: Isthmus of Tehuantepec and Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico through all of Central America 

 and northern South America into Amazonian drainage of Brazil, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia; Trinidad. 



Content: Four subspecies. 



Key to the subspecies Clave de subespecies 



1. No paravertebral stripes on body 2 1. Sin cintas paravertebrales en el cuerpo 2 



Pair of paravertebral stripes on body Par de cintas paravertebrales en el cuerpo- 



- poec I lonotus poec i lonotus 



2. Head and neck same color as rest of body 2, Color de cabeza y cuello igual que el resto 



3 del cuerpo 3 



Head and neck coal black, rest of body with Cabeza y cuello negro carbon, resto del 



transverse markings chrysobronchus cuerpo con marcas transversales 



chrysobronchus 



3. Body unlcolor, dull brown In adults; series J- Cuerpo unlcolor, pardo opaco en adultos; 



of brown bands on light brown ground color serie de bandas pardas en fondo pardo 



in juveniles polylep i s claro en juveniles polylep I s 



Body markings of scattered dark spots and Cuerpo marcado por manchas oscuras 



oblique lines arqus dispersas y I'neas obllcuas arqus 



