Historical perspective 



The renewed interest in herpetological researches that occurred in the 1970's in the People's Repubhc 

 of China (hereafter merely referred to as China) led to the descriptions of many new taxa. Between 1972 

 and 1995, 17 species and 14 subspecies of snakes were described as new, either by Chinese or foreign 

 authors. All species are still considered as valid, whereas seven subspecies proved to be junior synonyms of 

 other taxa. The majority of the new snakes occur in the mountainous areas of central and southern China 

 and includes several taxa of venomous snakes. 



The descriptions of new snakes published between 1975 and 1995 appeared in Chinese journals such 

 as Acta zoologica Sinica {Dongwu Xuebao) and Acta zootaxonomica Sinica (Dongwu Fenlei Xuebao), 

 and also in more regional publications, university journals, and in collected works. But most descriptions 

 were published in specialized journals like Materials for herpetological Research {Liangqi Paxing 

 Dongwu Yanjiu Ziliao) and Acta herpelologica Sinica, of which three series were published, respectively 

 between 1979-1982 (Old series) (Liangqi Paxing Dongwu Yanjiu), during the period 1982-1988 (New 

 series) (Liangqi Paxing Dongwu Xuebao), and from 1992 onwards (Liangqi Paxing Dongwu Xue Yanjiu). 

 Nearly all articles in these journals were in Chinese, although most articles included a short, sometimes 

 disappointingly brief, English summary. We refer the reader to ZHAO & Adler (1993) and ZHAO & ZHAO 

 (1994) for an overview of the Chinese herpetological literature. 



The rich Chinese herpetofauna can be explained by a combination of geographical and climatic 

 factors. This area, and especially the mountains of southern China east of the Himalaya, northern Myanmar 

 and northeastern India, seems to be a center of dispersal for several reptile groups. This region is 

 characterised by a high number of crotaline species. So, while preparing a monograph on the Asian 

 pitvipers of the Trimeresurus-complex (Serpentes, Viperidae, Crotalinae), one of us (PD) had to refer to 

 many Chinese publications. According to ZHAO & ADLER (1993), DAVID (1995), ZHAO (1995a, 1995b) 

 and David & INEICH (in press), the Trimeresurus-complex, namely the four currently recognized genera 

 Trimeresurus Lacepede, 1804, Ermia Zhang, 1992, Ovophis Burger in Hoge & Romano Hoge, 1981 and 

 Tropidolaemus Wagler, 1830, currently has 43 species, ranging from Nepal to southern India and Sri 

 Lanka, to eastern China and Japan, and to eastern Indonesia. It is particularly well represented in central, 

 eastern and southern China and Hainan, with a total of 17 taxa, 13 species and four subspecies, not 

 including the nominal subspecies. Taiwan is the home of four species, all but one also occurring on the 

 mainland. 



The taxonomy of this group is far from perfectly known, and during the period 1977-1995, seven new 

 forms of the genus Trimeresurus, namely four species and three subspecies, were described from 

 continental China, including a very large species. At the same time, a subspecies described long ago and 



