Erythrolamprus ornatus explained

Erythrolamprus ornatus, also known commonly as the ornate ground snake and the Saint Lucia racer, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is native to the eastern Caribbean. It is the rarest snake on earth with fewer than 20 left in the wild.^[1]

Geographic range

Erythrolamprus ornatus is endemic to Saint Lucia,^[2] an island nation in the West Indies, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It once lived all over Saint Lucia, but now is only found on the islet of Maria Major.^[3]

Habitat

The preferred natural habitats of E. ornatus are forest and shrubland, at altitudes from sea level to 950m (3,120feet).

Description

Adults of this non-venomous snake, E. ornatus, may attain a total length (including tail) of 123.5cm (48.6inches).^[4] Its coloration is variable. Some individuals have a broad brown vertebral stripe. In others, the brown stripe is interrupted by alternating yellow spots.^[4]

Behavior

Erythrolamprus ornatus is probably diurnal.^[4] Erythrolamprus ornatus is a ambush predator.

Diet

Erythrolamprus ornatus preys on small rodents and lizards.^[4]

Reproduction

Erythrolamprus ornatus is oviparous.

Conservation status

In 1936, E. ornatus was declared extinct, but it was rediscovered in 1973. It disappeared again soon after, but 11 individuals were found in 2012 on the mongoose-free island of Maria Major off the coast of Vieux Fort, Saint Lucia.^{[5] [6]} Currently the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, working with Fauna & Flora International, Saint Lucia National Trust and Saint Lucia Forestry Department, are working to build a captive breeding population with two facilities, one for breeding the snakes and one for cultivating food sources.^[7]

Further reading

• Garman S (1887). "On West Indian Reptiles in the Museum of Comparative Zoölogy, at Cambridge, Mass". Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 24: 278–286. (Dromicus ornatus, new species, p. 281).
• Grazziotin FG, Zaher H, Murphy RW, Scrocchi G, Benavides MA, Zhang Y-P, Bonatto SL (2012). "Molecular Phylogeny of the New World Dipsadidae (Serpentes: Colubroidea): a reappraisal". Cladistics 28 (5): 437–459. (Erythrolamprus ornatus, new combination, p. 457).
• Parker HW (1936). "Some extinct Snakes of the West Indies". Annals and Magazine of Natural History, Tenth Series 18: 227–233.
• Schwartz A, Henderson RW (1991). Amphibians & Reptiles of the West Indies: Descriptions, Distributions, and Natural History. Gainesville, Florida: University of Florida Press. 720 pp. . (Liophis ornatus, p. 625).
• Smith HM, Dixon JR, Wallach V (1993). "Dromicus giganteus Jan (Reptilia: Serpentes) is a nomen nudum ". Bulletin of the Maryland Herpetological Society 29 (3): 77–79.
• Williams RJ, Ross TN, Morton MN, Daltry JC, Isidore L (2016). "Update on the natural history and conservation status of the Saint Lucia racer, Erythrolamprus ornatus Garman, 1887 (Squamata: Dipsadidae)". Herpetology Notes 9: 157–162.

Notes and References

1. News: Saint Lucia racer. Fauna & Flora International .
2. [Albert Schwartz (zoologist)|Schwartz A]
3. Web site: Fauna & Flora International .
4. [species:Anita Malhotra|Malhotra A]
5. Web site: Snake Returns from Extinction . Discovery News . July 13, 2012 . July 13, 2012.
6. Web site: Victor . Jeannette . Facts about St. Lucian snakes including the rarest in the world . St Lucia News Online . 29 August 2019 . 14 March 2017.
7. Web site: Breeding facility set up for Critically Endangered Saint Lucia racer Durrell . 2023-11-28 . www.durrell.org . en.