Slatey-grey Snake

description

Synonyms. Zamenophis australis Günther, 1872; Lycodon keyensis Doria, 1874; Lycodon magnus Meyer, 1874; Lycodon darnleyensis Macleay, 1877; Herbertophis plumbeus Macleay, 1884; Stegonotus reticulatus Boulenger, 1895. Original name. Lycodon cucullatum Duméril et al., 1854: 376. Species descriptions at the MNHN in the days of the curatorship of André Marie Constant Duméril (Fig. 3 B) included sorting and preliminary labeling by the curator, collection management and specimen work by Gabriel Bibron (Fig. 3 C), and specimen work and writing by both A. M. C. Duméril and his son Auguste (Fig. 3 D). As the title for their description of this taxon, Duméril et al. (1854) used the common name “ Lycodon à Capuchon ” [hooded wolfsnake]. The Latin species epithet “ cucullatus ” is a literal translation of the French “ capuchon ” [hood] and was most likely chosen to reflect the contrasting body coloration, with blackish brown on the dorsum and yellowish white on the venter. The species description was presented in French. The image of A. M. C. Duméril (Fig. 3 B; public domain) is from an 1845 lithograph by the French illustrator Nicolas Eustache Maurin (1799 – 1850), that of Gabriel Bibron (Fig

The taxonomic history of Indo-Papuan groundsnakes, genus Stegonotus Duméril et al., 1854 (Colubridae), with some taxonomic revisions and the designation of a neotype for S. parvus (Meyer, 1874)

discussion

Comments. There has been some confusion about the type locality of S. cucullatus. It appears that the name given as “ Hâvre Dorey ” by Duméril et al. (1854) was incorrectly interpreted by Cogger et al. (1983) to indicate a port location (i. e., a town). When searching gazetteers or the Internet for a coastal location with this name, the only possibility that emerges is the town of Dore on the south shore of Yapen Island, the southernmost of the islands in the Schouten Archipelago of Cenderawasih Bay. However, there are three important pieces of evidence to prove that this interpretation is incorrect. Firstly, the reports detailing the ports-of-call for the voyage of the exploratory vessel La Coquille do not mention any layovers or stops on the islands of the Schouten Archipelago (Lescure 2015). Secondly, translation of the French term hâvre into English may also indicate a bay, and the inlet properly known as Doreri Bay 7 leads to the settlement now known as Manokwari, a significant coastal town on the Bird’s Head Peninsula of West Papua Province. Thirdly, and perhaps most famously, this location was listed as comprising Dorey Harbor and Dorey Village by Alfred Russel Wallace in hi

The taxonomic history of Indo-Papuan groundsnakes, genus Stegonotus Duméril et al., 1854 (Colubridae), with some taxonomic revisions and the designation of a neotype for S. parvus (Meyer, 1874)

materials_examined

Holotype. MNHN 3412 (Fig. 5; Table 1), an adult male. Type locality. “ Hâvre Dorey, à la Nouvelle Guinée ” [Doreri Bay, West Papua Province, West New Guinea]; see Comments. Collection. The primary collectors of amphibians and reptiles on the voyage of La Coquille (1822 – 25) were Prosper Garnot (1794 – 1838) and René-Primevère Lesson (1794 – 1849; Fig. 3 E). Garnot and Lesson were part of the medical staff aboard the Coquille on the sixth French voyage of discovery, the former hired as the main surgeon and the latter as the pharmacist, and both were placed in charge of the collection of terrestrial vertebrates (Lescure 2015). Based on the shipping records, the specimen must have been collected between 26 July and 9 August 1824 (Sclater 1886; Lescure 2015). The image of Lesson (Fig. 3 E; public domain) is by the French engraver Ambroise Tardieu (1788 – 1841).

The taxonomic history of Indo-Papuan groundsnakes, genus Stegonotus Duméril et al., 1854 (Colubridae), with some taxonomic revisions and the designation of a neotype for S. parvus (Meyer, 1874)