Species of snake
Rhadinella godmani, also known commonly as Godman's graceful brown snake, and as la culebra-café de Godman and la lagartijerita de Godman in American Spanish, is a species of snake in the subfamily Dipsadinae of the family Colubridae. The species is native to Central America and southern Mexico. There are two recognized subspecies.
Geographic range
R. godmani is found in extreme southeastern Mexico, in the Mexican states of Chiapas and Oaxaca, and in Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Panama.[1][3]
Habitat
The preferred natural habitat of R. godmani is forest, at altitudes of 1,200–2,650 m (3,940–8,690 ft), but has also been found in pasture land.[1]
Description
The longest specimen in the type series of R. godmani has total length of 44.5 cm (17.5 in), which includes a tail 13 cm (5.1 in) long.[2] The dorsal scales are arranged in 21 rows throughout the length of the body.[3]
Reproduction
R. godmani is oviparous.[1][3]
Subspecies
Two subspecies are recognized as being valid, including the nominotypical subspecies.[3]
- Rhadinella godmani godmani (Günther, 1865)
- Rhadinella godmani zilchi (Mertens, 1952)
Nota bene: A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Rhadinella.
Etymology
The specific name, godmani, is in honor of British naturalist Frederick DuCane Godman.[4]
The subspecific name, zilchi, is in honor of German malacologist Adolf Michael Zilch.[5]
