Coronella girondica

Coronella girondica is a species of harmless snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to southern Europe and northern Africa. No subspecies are recognized as being valid.[1]

Coronella girondica
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Genus: Coronella
Species:
C. girondica
Binomial name
Coronella girondica
(Daudin, 1803)
Synonyms[1]
  • Coluber girondicus
    Daudin, 1803
  • Coluber riccioli
    — Metaxa, 1823
  • Zamenis riccioli
    — Bonaparte, 1839
  • Coronella girundica [sic]
    A.M.C. Duméril & Bibron, 1854
    (ex errore)
  • Coronella riccioli
    — De Betta, 1857
  • Coronella girondica
    — Jan, 1866
Common names: southern smooth snake, Riccioli's snake.

Geographic range

C. girondica is found in Spain, Portugal, southern France, Monaco, Italy, Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia.[1][2] The type locality given is Bordeaux, France.[1]

Description

C. girondica is brown, grayish, or reddish dorsally, with dark brown or blackish transverse bars or spots. On the nape there is a dark U-shaped mark, or a pair of dark elongate spots. There is a dark streak from the eye to the corner of the mouth, a dark band from eye to eye across the prefrontals, and a black line below the eye. Ventrally it is yellowish or red with black markings. The dorsal scales, which are smooth, are in 21 rows (rarely 19). Adults may attain a total length of 62 cm (2 feet), of which 12.5 cm (5 inches) is tail.[3]

Habitat
Coronella girondica in Peneda-Gerês National Park, Portugal

The natural habitats of C. girondica are temperate forests, Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, rocky areas, pastureland, and plantations.[2]

It is threatened by habitat loss.

Conservation status

This species, C. girondica, is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (v3.1, 2001).[2] Species are listed as such due to their wide distribution, presumed large population, or because it is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a more threatened category. Year assessed: 2005.[4]

See also

References
  1. Coronella girondica at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 2 September 2007.
  2. Coronella girondica at the IUCN Red List. Accessed 2 September 2007.
  3. Boulenger GA (1894). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume II., Containing the Conclusion of the Colubridæ Aglyphæ. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xi + 382 pp. + Plates I-XX. (Coronella girondica, pp. 194-195).
  4. 2001 Categories & Criteria (version 3.1) at the IUCN Red List. Accessed 2 September 2007.

Further reading
  • Arnold EN, Burton JA (1978). A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Britain and Europe. (With 351 illustrations, 257 in colour by D.W. Ovenden). London: Collins. 272 pp. + Plates 1-40. ISBN 0-00-219318-3. (Coronella girondica, pp. 205-206 + Plate 38, figure 2 + Map 118).
  • Daudin FM (1803). Histoire Naturelle, Générale et Particulière des Reptiles; Ouvrage faisant suite aux Œuvres de Leclerc de Buffon, et partie du Cours complet d'Histoire naturelle rédigé par C. S. Sonnini, membre de plusieurs Sociétés savantes. Tome sixième [Volume 6]. Paris: F. Dufart. 447 pp. (Coluber girondica, new species, pp. 432-434). (in French and Latin).
  • Jan [G], Sordelli F (1866). Iconographie générale des Ophidiens, Dix-septième livraison. Paris: J.-B. Baillière et Fils. Index + Plates I-VI. (Coronella girondica, Plate III, figures 1-3). (in French).


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