On some taxonomic and nomenclatural problems in Indian species of the genus Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 (Squamata: Colubridae)
Author
David, Patrick
Author
Das, Indraneil
Author
Vogel, Gernot
text
Zootaxa
2011
2799
1
14
journal article
10.5281/zenodo.277033
5330a8b4-94e6-4a63-8c98-e3ac55cb5998
1175-5326
277033
Note on
Oligodon cinereus
(
Günther, 1864
)
in
India
Simotes cinereus
Günther, 1864
: 215
.
Type
locality
. “Gamboja”, now
Cambodia
.
Holotype
. BMNH RR 1946.1.1.25 (adult male).
This species is widespread from extreme north-eastern
India
and eastern
Bangladesh
to south-eastern
China
and
Taiwan
, and southwards up to Peninsular
Thailand
across the whole of
Myanmar
,
Laos
,
Cambodia
and
Vietnam
(
Wagner 1975; our material
).
Oligodon cinereus
is mostly characterized by (1) 17–17–15 DSR, (2) anal entire, (3) no more than 182 VEN (no more than
176 in
the nominative subspecies), (4) a full complement of head scales including a loreal, (5) 8 (rarely 7) SL, SL 4–5 (rarely 3–4) entering orbit, (5) and 1 anterior temporal. Specimens with 15 DSR are referable to
Oligodon inornatus
(
Boulenger, 1914
)
; specimens with 17–17–15 DSR and more than 185 VEN belong to
Oligodon joynsoni
(
Smith, 1917
)
. This latter species is quite similar to reticulate patterned specimens of
O
. cinereus cinereus
but the number of ventrals easily separate these two distinct species, with
156– 178 in
O
.
c
.
cinereus
vs.
186–197 in
O
. joynsoni
.
FIGURE 3.
Oligodon cinereus
, ZSI 12356. A: General view. B: Head in dorsal view. C: Body venter.
A morphologically variable species,
Oligodon cinereus
shows a variety of dorsal patterns (see
Smith 1943
), which have been used as a basis for describing several subspecies. However, the current intraspecific taxonomy of this species remains unresolved. Although
Smith (1943)
did not recognize any subspecies, other authors such as
Taylor (1965)
accepted the validity of several subspecies, including
O
. cinereus tamdaoensis
(
Bourret, 1935
)
,
O
. cinereus pallidocinctus
Bourret, 1934
,
O
. cinereus swinhonis
(
Günther, 1864
)
and
O
. cinereus multifasciatus
(Jan & Sordelli, 1865)
. More recently,
Wagner (1975)
showed that the differences between the various subspecies were unclear. Wagner refrained from accepting subspecies, a position that we follow here.
Among these taxa, we here address the status of
Simotes multifasciatus
Jan & Sordelli, 1865
(
in
1860–1881
: Livraison 12, pl. IV: fig. 2.
Type
locality: “Sultanepore”, now Sultanpur, State of Uttar Pradesh, northern
India
.
Holotype
: not given, stated as deposited in the “
Musée de Bonn
”, presumably lost). The origin of the specimen is unclear, and would appear to have been collected in the first half of the 1800s, a period when only two notable collections were made by European naturalists outside
England
. Perhaps the most well-known is that of the Austro- Hungarian
Novara
Expedition, whose collections are in Vienna (
Gans 1955
). The second was made by the three Schlagintweit brothers, Hermann (
1826–1882
), Adolphe (
1829–1857
) and Robert (
1833–1885
), who originate from
Germany
(see
Armitage 1989
). Made incidental to geomagnetic studies, on behalf of the East
India
Company (
Sthanapati 1996
), this large collection of botanical, zoological as well as geological material was deposited in a number of museums in Europe, including Bonn (
Armitage 1989
). Significantly, the Schlagintweits followed “the course of the Ganges River upstream over Varanasi, Allahabad and Fatehgarh to the Himalaya” (
Praschag
et al.
2008
), clearly approaching Sultanpur in modern day Uttar Pradesh.
This taxon was depicted on a plate of Jan & Sordelli (
1865
in
1860–1881
). On page 8 of the Index to the plates, the
holotype
was said to have been deposited in the Museum of Bonn. According to Dr. W. Böhme (pers. comm. to P. David,
January 2009
), the zoological museum in Bonn at that time was the “Naturhistorisches Museum Poppelsdorf” (situated in what is now a suburb of the city of Bonn), but was destroyed during World War II (see
Friedrich 2006
), together with nearly all its holdings. The
type
of
Simotes multifasciatus
is therefore considered lost.
Jan & Sordelli (
1865
in
1860–1881
) merely stated that the specimen had 17 dorsal scale rows. Nevertheless, although incomplete, the drawing is detailed enough to derive some data of the head scalation (see
Table 2
). The depicted specimen shows a dorsal pattern made of irregular, dark crossbars, a dark nuchal marking pointing forwards, some blotches on the head, and a venter and under tail surface strongly marked with dark, square blotches.
TABLE 2.
Main morphological data of
Oligodon cinereus
in India. “Type J&S” = holotype of type of
Simotes multifasciatus
Jan & Sordelli, 1865
. See Material and Methods for explanation of other abbreviations. Lengths in millimetres.
Number Sex SVL TaL TaL/TL VEN SC DSR SL PreOc PosOc SubOc Temp
Type
J&S ɗ ---- ---- ---- ---- 32?–17–? 8/8?/1?/2?/1? / 1+2 ZSI 12356 Ψ 150 17 0.102 169 30
17–17–15 8
/7 1/1 2/2 1/1 1+2 / 1+2
Taylor (1965)
recognized
O
. cinereus swinhonis
(
Günther, 1864
)
and
O
. cinereus multifasciatus
(Jan & Sordelli, 1865)
for populations from
Thailand
. However,
Taylor (1965)
pointed out that the
type
locality of
Simotes multifasciatus
Jan & Sordelli, 1865
was “Sultanepore”, “a locality unknown to me”. Although there is no such locality in
Thailand
, there are indeed several cities known as Sultanpoor, now Sultanpur in
India
. All of them are located in the northern part of
India
, in the states of Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, and Uttar Pradesh. However, the most famous of them is the legendary capital of Ram, a locality in the ancient Kingdom of Oudh in northern
India
. It is now the Indian city of Sultanpur, south-east of Lucknow, State of Uttar Pradesh. We suggest that the specimen described by Jan & Sordelli (
1865
in
1860–1881
) originated from this once famous city.
The general habitus of the
type
of
Simotes multifasciatus
Jan & Sordelli, 1865
and the number of dorsal scale rows allow us to agree with previous authors, such as
Smith (1943)
and
Wagner (1975)
, in referring this taxon to the
Oligodon cinereus
complex, namely
O
. cinereus
and its current numerous synonyms. However, this locality is out of the known range of
O
. cinereus
in
India
, from where it was previously known only from the state of Assam (Tinsukia, Tinsukia District); see
Wagner (1975)
. Sultanpur in Uttar Pradesh is ca.
1,200 km
from the previously westernmost known locality of
O
. cinereus
.
Dasgupta & Raha (2004)
mentioned, as
Oligodon cyclurus
, a specimen (ZSI 12356), from “Cargola, Purnea”, the latter, an old spelling for (the District of) Purnia, in the north-eastern Indian State of Bihar. We examined this specimen (
Figs. 3
A–C), which shares with the
holotype
of
Simotes multifasciatus
the number of 17 DSR, the dorsal pattern with distinct black crossbands and the blotched venter. We here refer it to
Oligodon cinereus
, as currently defined. Its main morphological characters are given in
Table 2
.
Distribution of
Oligodon cinereus
in
India
and
Bangladesh
(
Fig. 4
)
. On this basis, we extend the range of
Oligodon cinereus
in northern
India
(see
Fig. 4
). In the north-western part of its range, this species is now known from the following localities:
India
(based on
Agarwal
et al.
2010
;
Dasgupta & Raha 2004
,
2006
;
Mathew 1995
;
Wagner 1975
; examined material). State of Arunachal Pradesh: Eaglenest Wildlife Sanctuary. State of Assam: Jaipur, Tinsukia District; Tezpur, Sonitpur District; Tinsukia, Tinsukia District. State of Bihar: Cargola, Purnia District. State of Meghalaya: West Garo Hills; East Khasi Hills. State of Nagaland: Naga Hills. State of Uttar Pradesh: Sultanpur, Sultanpur District.
Bangladesh
(based on
Smith 1943
;
Wagner 1975
). “
Chittagong
Hills”. According to its scalation data, especially the number of dorsal scale rows, the specimen recorded from Changlang District, State of Arunachal Pradesh, and cited by
Sanyal & Gayen (2006)
, is not conspecific with
O
. cinereus
.
Comparison with other populations of
Oligodon cinereus
.
Smith (1943)
and
Wagner (1975)
defined several morphs within this species, based on the dorsal, head and ventral patterns. Smith’s “Var. I” is nearly unpatterned above and with a powdered venter. This morph, to which the
holotype
of
Simotes cinereus
belongs, is widespread in
Myanmar
,
Thailand
and the Indochinese Peninsula.
Smith (1943)
also recognized a “Var. II” with strong, dark reticulations or irregular crossbars, and a uniform head; this author referred
Simotes multifasciatus
to this morph, which is considered to be widespread from southern
Myanmar
to southern
China
. Smith’s “Var. III” includes specimens with distinct dorsal black crossbars and strong reticulations between the crossbars, head with at least a nuchal chevron, and a venter strongly patterned with rectangular blotches. According to
Smith (1943)
, this morph, described as
Holarchus violaceus tamdaoensis
Bourret, 1935
, occurs in
India
,
Bangladesh
,
Myanmar
, northern
Thailand
, and
Vietnam
. Smith also recognized a “Var. IV”, which is not relevant to the present discussion because it occurs in
Vietnam
and
Laos
and presents a dorsal pattern made of white, dark-edged crossbars.
Wagner (1975)
recognized the same patterns as Smith, and he (p. 80) published an interesting map showing the range of species in correlation with the dorsal pattern of specimens examined by him. The range of the “blackbarred” morph is especially noteworthy and confirms Smith’s (1943) suggestions. It occurs in Assam (Tinsukia),
Myanmar
, northern and central
Thailand
and northern
Vietnam
. We examined four specimens from
Myanmar
and confirm that they are identical in pattern and scalation with those from northern
Vietnam
.
FIGURE 4.
Range of
Oligodon cinereus
in India and Bangladesh. Solid circles = examined specimens; open circles = literature records; star = type locality of
Simotes multifasciatus
Jan & Sordelli, 1865
. Specimens from Myanmar are not included.
According to our material, we do not separate Smith’s forms I and II. Some “immaculate” specimens (Form I) show some reticulations and, furthermore, there is no difference in morphometry and scalation between these two morphs. In contrast, specimens with dark, solid dorsal crossbars (Form III of Smith; black-barred morph of Wagner) are distinct not only in both their pattern on dorsum and belly, but also in morphometry (relative tail of length, and body scalation, see Table 3). There is no difference in various characters of head scalation between these two morphs but the length:width ratio of the frontal is greater in Morphs I+II.
The drawing of the
holotype
of
Simotes multifasciatus
Jan & Sordelli, 1865
shows irregular crossbars, a dark nuchal chevron and a heavily blotched venter. These characters are similar to those of Smith’s Form III. We here refer the
holotype
of
Simotes multifasciatus
to this morph. A discussion on the intraspecific taxonomy of
Oligodon cinereus
will be addressed elsewhere (Vogel
et al.
, unpublished data) but black barred specimens of
India
,
Myanmar
and
Thailand
and those of northern
Vietnam
and
Laos
might prove to be distinct at the species level from other morphs of
Oligodon cinereus
.
TABLE 3.
Comparison between morphs of
Oligodon cinereus
.
See Material and Methods for explanation of abbreviations. Morph Sex TaL/TL VEN Sc L-Fr / W-Fr Smith’s I + II ɗ 0.129–0.149 (
x =
0.140) 156–168 (
x =
162.9) 35–42 (
x =
37.2) 1.20–1.37(
x =
1.28) “
cinereus
” Ψ 0.123–0.131 (
x =
0.127) 167–178 (
x =
173.5) 33–37 (
x =
35.3) (n = 18)
Smith’s III ɗ 0.122–0.140 (
x =
0.128) 169–180 (
x =
173.3) 30–42 (
x =
36.6) 1.11–1.30(
x =
1.20) “
tamdaoensis
” Ψ 0.101–0.120 (
x =
0.112) 173–184 (
x =
176.4) 30–36 (
x =
32.9) (n = 19)
The precision of the
type
locality of
Simotes multifasciatus
Jan & Sordelli, 1865
has implications for the taxonomy of the genus
Oligodon
in
Thailand
.
Taylor (1965)
referred a total of four specimens of
Oligodon
from northern
Thailand
to the subspecies
O
. cinereus swinhonis
(
Günther, 1864
)
(one specimen; from “
12 km
north of Chiang
Dao
, Chiang Mai Province) and
O
. cinereus multifasciatus
(Jan & Sordelli, 1865)
(three; from “Chang Dow [
12 km
, north], Chiang Mai Province; Loei Province), respectively. According to the descriptions given by Taylor, these specimens have 17–17–15 DSR, 190–197 VEN and 32–42 SC (see
Table 4
). Their dorsal pattern is made of irregular dark crossbars with either faint (“
swinhonis
”) or strong (“
multifasciatus
”) reticulations.
TABLE 4.
Comparison between specimens of
Oligodon joynsoni
and Thai specimens referred to
Oligodon cinereus
by Taylor (1965). See Material and Methods for explanation of abbreviations. Lengths in millimetres. * The value of the total length given by Taylor (90 mm) is obviously a lapsus for 190 mm.
Specimen Sex SVL TaL TaL/TL VEN SC DSR SL ATem
O
. joynsoni
BMNH 1946.1.4.23 ɗ 655 105 0.138 190 47
17–17–15 8
/ 8 1 / 1 BMNH 1969.1809 ɗ 570 100 0.149 186 50
17–17–15 7
/ 7 2 / 2 MNHN 1896.0633 Ψ 572 80 0.123 194 39
17–17–15 8
/ 8 2 / 2 Taylor’s specimens
| 3464 |
Ψ |
548 |
84 |
0.133 |
196 |
42 |
17–17–15 |
7 / 7 2 / 2 |
| EHT-HMS 3623 |
Ψ |
606 |
77 |
0.113 |
196 |
38 |
17–17–15 |
7 / 7 2/1 / 2/1 |
| 31699 |
ɗ |
529 |
71 |
0.119 |
190 |
32 |
17–17–15 |
8 / 7 ----- |
| 28 |
ɗ |
169* |
21 |
0.111 |
197 |
42 |
17–17–15 |
7 / 7 ----- |
We have discussed above the status of
Simotes multifasciatus
Jan & Sordelli, 1865
, showing that its
type
locality is indeed ‘India’. The
type
locality of
Simotes swinhonis
Günther, 1864
is “Amoy”, now Xiamen, Fujian Province,
People’s Republic of China
. The number of ventrals in specimens examined by Taylor is much higher than those of the
syntypes
of
Simotes swinhonis
(156–168) and of the Indian specimen identified by us above as similar to the
type
of
Simotes multifasciatus
. We will not discuss here the status of
Simotes swinhonis
Günther, 1864
, regarded by
Smith (1943)
and
Wagner (1975)
as a synonym of
Oligodon cinereus
(reticulated morph).
The four
Thai
specimens of the
Oligodon cinereus
group examined by
Taylor (1965)
agree in scalation and pattern with the description of
Simotes longicauda joynsoni
Smith, 1917
(p. 276.
Type
locality: “Maa Yome, Muang Ngow, N.
Thailand
”, now Muang Ngao or Muang Ngau,
18° 45' 27” N
,
99° 58' 42” E
, Lampang Province).
Oligodon joynsoni
(
Smith, 1917
)
is now considered a valid species of the
O
. cinereus
group based on a high number of ventrals (> 185) and subcaudals (> 36). Furthermore, Taylor’s specimens were obtained from the provinces of Chiang Mai and Loei, in localities quite close to the
type
locality of
O
. joynsoni
.
We identify as
Oligodon joynsoni
the four specimens described by Taylor and referred to
O
. cinereus swinhonis
and
O
. cinereus multifasciatus
. The current range of
O
.
joynsoni
, a relatively rarely encountered species, known from northern
Thailand
and
Laos
, is given in
Fig. 5
(after
Smith 1943
;
Taylor 1965
;
Nabhitabhata
et al.
2004
; our material). This species is now known from the following localities:
Thailand
. Chiang Mai Province: North of Chiang
Dao
. Lampang Province: Muang Ngao; Mae Wang. Loei Province: No locality.
Laos
. No precise locality.
Nabhitabhata
et al.
(2004
:120) also recorded this species from the
Thai
provinces of Kamphaeng Phet (Khlong Lan) and Nakhon Ratchasima (Khao Yai). However, no information on their scalation was provided and given that confusion with
Oligodon cinereus
is easy, we regard these localities as in need of confirmation.
Taylor (1965:781)
mentioned
O
. joynsoni
from
Thailand
but stated not to have seen specimens. This confusion probably arose due to the fact that the
holotype
of
S. multifasciatus
agrees in pattern with
O
. joynsoni
(
Smith, 1917
)
.