Biology:Rice paddy snake
| Rice paddy snake | |
|---|---|
| |
| From Phetchabun Province, western Thailand | |
Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Homalopsidae |
| Genus: | Hypsiscopus |
| Species: | H. plumbea
|
| Binomial name | |
| Hypsiscopus plumbea (F. Boie, 1827)
| |
| Synonyms[2] | |
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The rice paddy snake (Hypsiscopus plumbea), also known as grey water snake,[3] Boie's mud snake,[1] yellow or orange bellied water snake, lead water snake or plumbeous water snake is a species of mildly venomous, rear-fanged snake endemic to South Asia.[4][5] It is somewhat common, and is one of the most widespread species of water snake in Asia.[5][6][3]
Taxonomy
The species epithet, plumbea, means 'lead-like' and refers to the snake's greyish upper body.[3]
DNA evidence suggests that this taxon might be a species complex.[1]
Description
The rice paddy snake is a relatively small snake, reaching a total length (including tail) of up to 72 cm (28 in), although sources vary.[4] This snake feeds readily on small fish, frogs, and occasionally small lizards. It has countershading coloration, which is dark brown to grey in the upper part of its body, and light colored white to yellowish color at the bottom of its body. In some populations, the upper part may be greenish, and dark spots along the vertebral line may also occur.[3] It is mainly nocturnal.[3]
Distribution and habitat
The rice paddy snake is found in the Andaman Islands (India), Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, southern China, and Taiwan.[1][3][4]
The rice paddy snake is a common and abundant species associated with a variety of wet habitats.<ref name="
<gallery>
File:Hypiscopus plumbea, Rice paddy snake 1.jpg|Hypiscopus plumbea at Nong Phai District, Phetchabun Province, Thailand
File:Enhyd plumbe 120607-0067 krw.jpg|Hypiscopus plumbea
from Karawang, West Java
File:Vietnamese Centipede imported from iNaturalist photo 84659836 on 24 September 2022.jpg|Plumbeous water snake being eaten by Scolopendra dehaani, a species of large centipede.
</gallery>
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Murphy, J. (2010). "Hypsiscopus plumbea". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010: e.T176699A7285894. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T176699A7285894.en. https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/176699/7285894. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
- ↑ Hypsiscopus plumbea at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 4 May 2021.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 "Grey Water Snake - Hypsiscopus plumbea". https://www.ecologyasia.com/verts/snakes/grey-water-snake.htm.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Breuer, Hans; William Christopher Murphy (2009–2010). "Hypsiscopus plumbea". Snakes of Taiwan. https://www.snakesoftaiwan.com/hypsiscopus-plumbea.html.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Plumbeous Water Snake - Hypsiscopus plumbea" (in en-US). https://www.hongkongsnakeid.com/plumbeous-water-snake.
- ↑ Pets. "Rice paddy snake" (in en). https://www.mascotarios.org/serpiente-acuatica-de-vientre-amarillo/.
Further reading
- Boie, F. (1827). "Bemerkungen über Merrem's Versuch eines Systems der Amphibien, 1. Lieferung: Ophidier ". Isis van Oken [Jena] 20: 508–566. (Homalopsis plumbea, new species, p. 550).
- Boulenger, G.A. (1896). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume III., Containing the Colubridæ (Opisthoglyphæ and Proteroglyphæ), ... London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xiv + 727 pp. + Plates I-XXV. (Hypsirhina plumbea, pp. 5–6).
- Das, Indraneil. (2006). A Photographic Guide to Snakes and Other Reptiles of Borneo. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 144 pp. ISBN:0-88359-061-1. (Enhydris plumbea, p. 34).
- Ghodke, Sameer; Harry V. Andrews. (2002). Enhydris plumbea (Boie, 1827) (Serpentes: Colubridae: Homalopsinae), a new record for India. Hamadryad 26 (2): 373–375. [2001]
- Gray, J.E. (1842). Monographic Synopsis of the Water Snakes, or the Family Hydridae. Zoological Miscellany 1842: 59–68. (Hypsirhina plumbea, p. 66).
- Smith, M.A. (1943). The Fauna of British India, Ceylon and Burma, Including the Whole of the Indo-Chinese Sub-region. Reptilia and Amphibia. Vol. III.—Serpentes. London: Secretary of State for India. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xii + 583 pp. (Enhydris plumbea, pp. 382–383, Figure 122).
- Stejneger, Leonard. (1907). Herpetology of Japan and Adjacent Territory. United States National Museum Bulletin 58. Washington, District of Columbia: Smithsonian Institution. xx + 577 pp. (Enhydris plumbea, pp. 300–302, Figures 260–262).
- Voris, Harold K.; Karns, Daryl R. (1996). Habitat utilization, movements, and activity patterns of Enhydris plumbea (Serpentes: Homalopsinae) in a rice paddy wetland in Borneo. Herpetological Natural History 4 (2): 111–126.
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