Jubones Cat-eyed Snake

description

Description of the holotype. Male, SVL = 445 mm, TL = 173 mm. Head distinct from neck; rostral barely visible from above; head two times longer than broad and almost 2.4 times longer than deep. Eye slightly protuberant, occupying 16.5 % of length of head, with elliptical pupil visible from anterior, lateral, dorsal, and ventral aspects; rostral 1.8 times wider than high, concave in anterior view, and narrowly visible from above. Prefrontals hexagonal, slightly longer than broad, twice the length of internasals, each in contact with its mate and with frontal posteriorly, supraocular (left only) posterolaterally, preocular posterolaterally, nasal anterolaterally, internasal anteriorly, and loreal laterally; frontal approximately pentagonal, 1.3 times longer than wide (greatest width), and its length about the same distance from its anterior edge to tip of snout. Supraocular longer than wide, in contact with frontal medially, preocular anteriorly, eye laterally, postocular posterolaterally, and parietal posteriorly; frontal slightly shorter than suture between parietals; broad parietals, about 2 times longer than wide; interparietal suture 1.1 times shorter than distance from frontal

A new species of cat-eyed snake (Serpentes: Dipsadinae: Leptodeirini) from the Andes of southern Ecuador

diagnosis

Diagnosis. Leptodeira misinawui can be distinguished from other congeners by unique combination of the following characters: 19 (25 %) or 21 (75 %) midbody dorsal scale rows, reducing to 16 (25 %) or 17 (75 %) posteriorly; 2 – 3 preoculars (usually 2); vertebral and paravertebral rows not enlarged; single nape bar; faint intercalary spots; and 54 – 72 (average 63.25 ± 7.89 SD) body blotches rarely forming a continuous zig-zag stripe, 2 – 3 dorsal scales in length, half the length of light interspaces, and extending laterally onto scale rows 7 – 8. The new species differs from Leptodeira ornata (in parentheses) from western Ecuador in having 54 – 72 dorsal blotches along body (vs. 30 – 47), and tail length / body length 0.30 in females, 0.36 – 0.39 in males (vs. 0.21 – 0.26 in females, 0.23 – 0.30 in males). Similarly, L. misinawui has more dorsal blotches along body than L. larcorum (42 – 54). The dorsal blotches of L. misinawui are noticeably smaller (usually 2 scales long and> 10 scales wide). Although similar in morphology, the hemipenis of L. misinawui differs from those of L. larcorum and L. ornata in having shorter spines, with an average spine length / spine base-width rat

A new species of cat-eyed snake (Serpentes: Dipsadinae: Leptodeirini) from the Andes of southern Ecuador

distribution

Distribution and natural history. Leptodeira misinawui is known from upper basin of Jubones River, Azuay Province, at elevations between 950 – 2,734 m asl (Fig. 5). This area corresponds to Evergreen Montane Forest of the southern Ecuadorian Andes and is characterized by a series of small isolated mountains within an inter-Andean valley (Ministerio del Ambiente del Ecuador 2012). Habitat at the type locality is characterized by medium size shrubs <2 m high, with scattered herbaceous vegetation that usually accumulate water (Fig. 6). Individuals of L. misinawui were encountered active at night near roots of shrubs, near trails, and in a small water pool. * Data from Duellman (1958) for specimens of “ Leptodeira septentrionalis ornata ” from western Ecuador.

A new species of cat-eyed snake (Serpentes: Dipsadinae: Leptodeirini) from the Andes of southern Ecuador

etymology

Etymology. The specific epithet “ misinawui ” derives from the Quechua-Cañari words “ misi ” meaning cat, and “ ñawui ” meaning eye, and refers to the similarity of the eye of the new species to the eye of a cat. This epithet honors the Quechua-Cañari culture from southern Ecuador. We propose the Standard English Name: Jubones Cat-Eyed Snakes and the Standard Spanish Name: Serpientes Ojo de Gato del Jubones.

A new species of cat-eyed snake (Serpentes: Dipsadinae: Leptodeirini) from the Andes of southern Ecuador