Texas Patch-nosed Snake

diagnosis

Diagnosis Well-developed rostral scale, elongated and with free edges; 8 or 9 supralabials, fourth and fifth in contact with the eye; 9 to 11 infralabials; preocular divided; a single loreal scale; prenasal scale in contact with or separated from the second supralabial; a second pair of chinshields in contact with each other or separated by a row of scales; 179 – 202 ventral scales; 81 – 107 subcaudal scales; maxillary teeth normally 10 + 3. Color pattern consists of a pale vertebral line reaching the top of the head, three to five rows of scales wide on the first third of the body and only three posteriorly; head bordered by a pair of continuous dorsolateral lines from the loreal region across the body, dark line on the sixth and seventh dorsal scales; lateral line paler than the well-developed dorsolateral line on the third row of dorsal scales. Differs from S. grahamiae by having a pair of well-defined lateral lines on the third row of the dorsal scales, extending from the first third of the body and to the cloaca.

Phylogenetic relationships based on morphological data and taxonomy of the genus Salvadora Baird & Girard, 1853 (Reptilia, Colubridae)

distribution

Distribution and conservation United States from eastern Texas southward through northwestern Mexico in the states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, Durango, Zacatecas, San Luis Potosí, Guanajuato Querétaro, Michoacán, Hidalgo, Puebla and northern Veracruz (Fig. 8). This species occurs in several protected natural areas in Mexico and the United States. Mexico and the United States have not listed this species in any protection category, but it is on the IUCN red list as a species of Least Concern.

Phylogenetic relationships based on morphological data and taxonomy of the genus Salvadora Baird & Girard, 1853 (Reptilia, Colubridae)

etymology

Etymology Derived from the Latin ‘ linea ’, meaning ‘ line’, in reference to the conspicuous lateral line.

Phylogenetic relationships based on morphological data and taxonomy of the genus Salvadora Baird & Girard, 1853 (Reptilia, Colubridae)

materials_examined

Type material examined UNITED STATES • ♀; Texas, Kleberg County, Kingsville; 1938; J. C. Cross; FMNH 28605.

Phylogenetic relationships based on morphological data and taxonomy of the genus Salvadora Baird & Girard, 1853 (Reptilia, Colubridae)