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PROCEEDINGS OF THE CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES 
Series 4, Volume 65, Supplement II 
(1915:220), Schmidt (1933:15), Monard (1937b:137), Bogert (1940:92), Frade (1963:253). 
Dendroaspis polylepis polylepis: Loveridge (1957:294), FitzSimons (1962:310), Baynham (2010:25), 
Conradie et al. (2016:22). 
Dendroaspis polylepis polylepis (Dendroaspis polylepis): Mananas (1981:30). 
Dendroaspis polylepis: Hakansson and Madsen (1983:186), Broadley (1990:297), Spawls and Branch 
(1995:49), Broadley and Cotterill (2004:48), Chippaux (2006:235), Chirio and LeBreton (2007:572), 
Dobiey and Vogel (2007:44), Bates et al. (2014:398), Wallach et al. (2014:220), Branch and Conradie 
(2015:200), Ceriaco et al. (2016b:87). 
Global conservation status (lUCN): Least Concern. 
Global distribution: The species has an enormous range throughout the savannas of sub- 
Saharan Africa, occuring from Senegal eastwards to Sudan, Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia, then 
south to the Eastern Cape in South Africa, and west to Namibia and Angola, but absent from the 
equatorial forests of west and central Africa and from desert areas. Range in West Africa highly 
fragmented. 
Ocurrences in Angola (Map 327): The 
species mainly occurs in the west and central 
areas of Angola, however, it is also widely dis¬ 
tributed in the eastern regions of the country. 
There are no published records from most 
coastal areas or from the Namib Desert. Zaire: 
“Luanda Pil, approximately 6.5 km west of 
Soyo airport” [-6.155556, 12.26611] (Bayn¬ 
ham 2010:25). Lunda Norte: “Carumbo” 
[-7.74422, 19.95467] (Branch and Conradie 
2015:200). Malanje: “Malanje” [-9.55000, 
16.35000] (Peters 1881:149); “Cangandala 
National Park” [-9.84606, 16.72233] (Ceriaco 
et al. 2016b:87). Bie: “Chitau” [-11.43333, 
17.15000] (Schmidt 1933:15). Benguela: 
“Quissange” [-12.43333, 14.05000] (Bocage 
1888:143; Mana 9 as 1981:30); “Quindumbo” 
[-12.46667, 14.93333] (Bocage 1888:143, 
1895a: 140; Monard 1937b: 137; Managas 
1981:30); “Cahata” [-12.35000, 14.81667] (Bocage 1895a:140; Monard 1937b:137; Managas 
1981:30); “Hanha” [-12.25000, 13.75000] (Bogert 1940:92). HmTa: “Molundo” 
[-15.63333, 15.20000] (Schmidt 1933:15). Cuando Cubango: “Cuando basin (37)” (observation 
record) [-17.67833, 22.61475] (Conradie et al. 2016:9, 10, 22). 
Taxonomic and distributional notes: For some time Dendroaspis polylepis (Gunther, 1864) 
was wrongly identified as Dendroaspis angusticeps (Smith, 1849) in Angola (Bocage 1866a, 1888, 
1895a; Peters 1877a, 1888; Boulenger 1915; Schmidt 1933; Bogert 1940; Frade 1963). This is 
clearly a misidentification, as D. angusticeps has a restricted distribution in Eastern southern Africa 
(Managas 1981; Wallach et al. 2014). Branch and Conradie (2015) recently collected D. polylepis 
from Lake Carumbo, in Lunda Norte Province, the most eastern record of the species in Angola 
and Branch et al. (in Conradie et al. 2016) suggested that the species is likely more widely distrib¬ 
uted in southern Angola than previously believed. 
Map 327. Distribution of Dendroaspis polylepis in 
Angola. 
