Colubrinae Explained

The Colubrinae are a subfamily of snakes within the family Colubridae. It includes numerous genera, and although taxonomic sources often disagree on the exact number, the Reptile Database lists 717 species in 92 genera as of September 2019.[1] It is the second largest subfamily of colubrids, after Dipsadinae.[1] Many of the most commonly known snakes are members of this subfamily, including rat snakes, king snakes, milk snakes, vine snakes, and indigo snakes.[1]

Distribution

Colubrine snakes are distributed worldwide, with the highest diversity in North America, Asia, northern Africa, and the Middle East. There are relatively few species of colubrine snakes in Europe, South America, Australia, and southern Africa, and none in Madagascar, the Caribbean, or the Pacific Islands.[1] [2] [3]

Description

Colubrine snakes are extremely morphologically and ecologically diverse. Many are terrestrial, and there are specialized fossorial (e.g. Tantilla) and arboreal (e.g. Oxybelis) groups, but no truly aquatic groups. Some of the most powerful constrictors (e.g. Pantherophis, Pituophis, Lampropeltis) are members of this group, as are a few snakes that have strong enough venom to kill humans (i.e. boomslangs [''[[Dispholidus]]] and twigsnakes [''[[Thelotornis]]]).[4] [5]

Classification

Colubrinae is one of several subfamilies within the family Colubridae, the largest family of snakes. Its phylogeny can be shown in the cladogram below:

Within Colubrinae, genera and species seem to make up five distinct radiations[6] that are to varying degrees broadly similar in terms of ecology and geographic distribution, although increased sampling is needed to determine whether all species currently placed in Colubrinae fit into one of these groups. These correspond roughly to the historically recognized tribe names Sonorini, Colubrini, Boigini/Lycodontini, Dispholidini, and Lampropeltini.

Coluber is the type genus of both Colubrinae and Colubridae and the basis for the name Colubroidea, and it is one of only three snake genera named by Carl Linnaeus still in use for a snake today.[7] [8]

List of Genera

A group of 4 genera historically placed in Colubrinae have recently been called a separate subfamily, Ahaetullinae, in a few analyses. These are Ahaetulla Link, 1807, Chrysopelea Boie, 1827, Dendrelaphis Boulenger, 1890, and Dryophiops Boulenger, 1896.[9]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Uetz. Peter. Colubrinae. The Reptile Database. 18 September 2019.
  2. Book: Wallach. V. W.. Williams. K. L.. Boundy. J.. Snakes of the World: A Catalogue of Living and Extinct Species. 2014. CRC Press. Boca Raton, Florida, USA.
  3. Book: Pough. F. H.. Andrews. R. M.. Crump. M. L.. Savitzky. A. H.. Wells. K. D.. Brandley. M. C.. Herpetology. 2016. Sinauer Associates, Inc.. Sunderland, Massachusetts, USA. 4th.
  4. Pla. D.. Sanz. L.. Whiteley. G.. Wagstaff. S. C.. Harrison. R. A.. Casewell. N. R.. Calvete. J. J.. What killed Karl Patterson Schmidt? Combined venom gland transcriptomic, venomic and antivenomic analysis of the South African green tree snake (the boomslang), Dispholidus typus. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - General Subjects. 2017. 1861. 4. 814–823. 10.1016/j.bbagen.2017.01.020. 28130154. 5335903.
  5. Fry. B. G.. Casewell. N. R.. Wüster. W.. Vidal. N.. Young. B.. Jackson. T. N.. The structural and functional diversification of the Toxicofera reptile venom system. Toxicon. 2012. 60. 4. 434–448. 10.1016/j.toxicon.2012.02.013. 22446061.
  6. Pyron. R. A.. Burbrink. F. T.. Colli. G. R.. De Oca. A. N. M.. Vitt. L. J.. Kuczynski. C. A.. Wiens. J. J.. The phylogeny of advanced snakes (Colubroidea), with discovery of a new subfamily and comparison of support methods for likelihood trees. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 2011. 58. 2. 329–342. 10.1016/j.ympev.2010.11.006. 21074626.
  7. Web site: Durso. Andrew. The Linnaean Snakes: Part I. Life is Short, but Snakes are Long. 19 May 2018. 2015-05-25.
  8. Web site: Durso. Andrew. The Linnaean Snakes: Part II. Life is Short, but Snakes are Long. 19 May 2018. 2015-06-30.
  9. Figueroa . A. . McKelvy . A. D. . Grismer . L. L. . Bell . C. D. . Lailvaux . S. P. . A species-level phylogeny of extant snakes with description of a new colubrid subfamily and genus . . 2016 . 11 . 9 . e0161070 . 10.1371/journal.pone.0161070 . 27603205 . 5014348 . 2016PLoSO..1161070F . free.

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