Biology:Cerberus (snake)

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Short description: Genus of snakes


Cerberus (snake)
Cerberus rynchops.jpg
Cerberus rynchops
Scientific classification e
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Homalopsidae
Genus: Cerberus
Cuvier, 1829
Species

Five, see text.

Cerberus (common name dog-faced water snakes) is a small genus of snakes in the family Homalopsidae.

Geographic range and habitat

Member species of the genus Cerberus are common inhabitants of Southeast Asia's mangrove habitat and mudflats.

Etymology

The generic name, Cerberus, refers to the dog-like Greek mythological creature Cerberus.[1]

Species

The following five species are recognized as being valid.[2]

  • Cerberus australis (Gray, 1842)
  • Cerberus dunsoni Murphy, Voris & Karns, 2012
  • Cerberus microlepis Boulenger, 1896
  • Cerberus rynchops (Schneider, 1799)
  • Cerberus schneiderii (Schlegel, 1837)

Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Cerberus.

References

  1. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN:978-1-4214-0135-5. (Genus Cerberus, p. 50).
  2. Genus Cerberus at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.com.

Further reading

  • Cuvier [G] (1829). Le règne animal distribué d'après son organisation, pour server de base a l'histoire naturelle des animaux et introduction a l'anatomie comparée. Nouvelle édition, revue et augmentée. Tome II. Les reptiles. Paris: Déterville. xv + 406 pp. (Cerberus, new genus, p. 81). (in French).


Wikidata ☰ Q2703143 entry