Elapsoidea guentherii
Species of snake
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Elapsoidea guentherii, also known commonly as Günther's garter snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae.[2] The species is native to Central Africa.[2]
| Elapsoidea guentherii | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Elapidae |
| Genus: | Elapsoidea |
| Species: | E. guentherii |
| Binomial name | |
| Elapsoidea guentherii Bocage, 1866 | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
Etymology
The specific name, guentherii, is in honor of German-British herpetologist Albert Günther.[3]
Geographic range
E. guentherii is found in Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.[1]
Habitat
Description
E. guentherii exhibits sexual dimorphism with males being significantly larger than females. Males may attain a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of 56 cm (22 in), but females only grow to 38.5 cm (15.2 in) SVL. Juveniles have a dorsal color pattern of alternating black and white crossbands of equal width. The pattern fades as the snakes mature, with adults becoming uniformly grayish black dorsally, and lighter gray ventrally.[4]