Epicrates is a genus of non-venomous snakes in the subfamily Boinae of the family Boidae. The genus is native to South America and Central America. Five species are currently recognized as being valid, including the rainbow boa.[2]
| Epicrates | |
|---|---|
| |
| Brazilian rainbow boa, E. c. cenchria | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Boidae |
| Subfamily: | Boinae |
| Genus: | Epicrates Wagler, 1830 |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Distribution and habitat edit
Species of Epicrates are found in lower Central America through South America as far south as Argentina.[1]
Species edit
| Species[2] | Taxon author[2] | Subspecies*[2] | Common name | Geographic range[1] | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| E. alvarezi | Ábalos, Báez & Nader, 1964 | 0 | Argentinian rainbow boa | northern Argentina, southeastern Bolivia, western Paraguay |  |
| E. assisi | Machado, 1945 | 0 | Caatinga rainbow boa | Brazil | _Figure_4_(cropped).jpg) |
| E. cenchriaT | (Linnaeus, 1758) | 4* | Rainbow boa[2] | French Guiana, Suriname, Guyana, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, Brazil, Bolivia, and Argentina |  |
| E. crassus | (Cope, 1862) | 0 | Paraguayan rainbow boa | Paraguay, Bolivia, Argentina, and Brazil |  |
| E. maurus | Gray, 1849 | 0 | Colombian rainbow boa; Brown rainbow boa | Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, northern Brazil, Trinidad, Tobago, Isla Margarita. |  |
- ) Not including the nominate subspecies.
T) Type species.[1]
Etymology edit
The specific name, alvarezi, is in honor of Argentine herpetologist Antenor Álvarez (1864–1948).[3]
The specific name, assisi, is in honor of Arlindo de Assis who collected the holotype.[4]
References edit
- ^ a b c d McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré T (1999). Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, vol. 1. Washington, District of Columbia: Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN 1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN 1-893777-01-4 (volume).
- ^ a b c d e "Epicrates". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 6 July 2008.
- ^ Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Epicrates alvarezi, p. 6).
- ^ Species Epicrates assisi at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
External links edit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Epicrates.
- Epicrates at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 6 July 2008.