''Atractus'' is a genus of Colubridae, colubrid ground snakes in the subfamily Dipsadinae. The genus includes more than 140 distinct species.

Geographic range

Snakes of the genus ''Atractus'' are Endemism, endemic to Central America, Central and South America.

Description

In the genus ''Atractus'' the maxilla is short, with 8–12 teeth; the maxillary and Mandible, mandibular teeth decrease in size posteriorly. The head is not distinct from the neck. The eye is small, with a round or subelliptic pupil. The nostril is between two nasal scales. The Ocular scales, preocular is usually absent, and the Loreal scale, loreal and prefrontal scales enter the orbit. The body is cylindrical. The dorsal scales are smooth, without apical pits, in 15 or 17 rows. The ventral scales are rounded. The tail can be either short or rather long. The Subcaudal scales, subcaudals are paired.

Reproduction

The genus ''Atractus'' is Oviparity, oviparous.

Species

The following species are recognized as being valid. ''Nota bene'': A Binomial nomenclature, binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than ''Atractus''. *''Atractus aboiporu'' *''Atractus acheronius'' *''Atractus akerios'' *''Atractus albuquerquei'' Osvaldo Rodrigues da Cunha, Cunha & Francisco Paiva do Nascimento, Nascimento, 1983 – Albuquerque ground snake *''Atractus alphonsehogei'' Cunha & Nascimento, 1983 – Alphonse's ground snake *''Atractus altagratiae'' *''Atractus alytogrammus'' *''Atractus andinus'' Alcides Prado, Prado, 1944 – Andean ground snake *''Atractus apophis'' *''Atractus arangoi'' Prado, 1940 – brown ground snake, big ground snake *''Atractus atlas'' Passos, Agustín Scanferla, Scanferla, Melo-Sampaio, Jorge Brito M., Brito & Ana Almendáriz, Almendariz, 2018 – atlas ground snake *''Atractus atratus'' *''Atractus attenuatus'' *''Atractus avernus'' *''Atractus ayeush'' *''Atractus badius'' (Friedrich Boie, F. Boie, 1827) – Boie's ground snake *''Atractus biseriatus'' Prado, 1941 – two-lined ground snake *''Atractus bocki'' Franz Werner, F. Werner, 1909 – Carl Bock (explorer), Bock's ground snake *''Atractus bocourti'' George Albert Boulenger, Boulenger, 1894 – Marie Firmin Bocourt, Bocourt's ground snake *''Atractus boimirim'' Passos, Prudente & J.D. Lynch, 2016 *''Atractus boulengerii'' Mario Giacinto Peracca, Peracca, 1896 *''Atractus caete'' *''Atractus careolepis'' *''Atractus carrioni'' Hampton Wildman Parker, Parker, 1930 – Parker's ground snake, Carrion's ground snake *''Atractus caxiuana'' *''Atractus cerberus'' – Cerberus ground snakeAlejandro Arteaga, Arteaga A, Konrad Mebert, Mebert K, Jorge H. Valencia, Valencia JH, Diego F. Cisneros-Heredia, Cisneros-Heredia DF, Nicolás Peñafiel, Peñafiel N, Carolina Reyes-Puig, Reyes-Puig C, José L. Vieira-Fernandes, Vieira-Fernandes JL, Juan M. Guayasamin, Guayasamin JM (2017). "Molecular Phylogeny of ''Atractus'' (Serpentes, Dipsadidae), with emphasis on Ecuadorian species and the description of three new taxa". ''Zookeys'' 661: 91-123. https://zookeys.pensoft.net/articles.php?id=11224 *''Atractus charitoae'' *''Atractus chthonius'' *''Atractus clarki'' Emmett Reid Dunn, Dunn & Joseph Randle Bailey, Bailey, 1939 – Clark's ground snake *''Atractus collaris'' – collared ground snake *''Atractus crassicaudatus'' (André Marie Constant Duméril, A.M.C. Duméril, Gabriel Bibron, Bibron & Auguste Duméril, A.H.A. Duméril, 1854) – thickhead ground snake *''Atractus dapsilis'' Melo-Sampaio, Passos, Fouquet, Prudente & Torres-Carvajal, 2019 *''Atractus darienensis'' *''Atractus depressiocellus'' *''Atractus discovery'' Arteaga, Quezada, Vieira, & Guayasamin, 2022 *''Atractus duboisi'' *''Atractus duidensis'' Janis Roze, Roze, 1961 – Venezuela ground snake *''Atractus dunni'' Jay M. Savage, Savage, 1955 – Dunn's ground snake *''Atractus echidna'' *''Atractus ecuadorensis'' Savage, 1955 – Ecuadorean ground snake *''Atractus edioi'' *''Atractus elaps'' (Albert Günther, Günther, 1858) – black ground snake *''Atractus emigdioi'' Manuel Ángel González-Sponga, Gonzalez-Sponga, 1971 – Emigdio's ground snake *''Atractus emmeli'' (Oskar Boettger, Boettger, 1888) – Emmel's ground snake, Boettger's ground snake *''Atractus eriki'' *''Atractus erythromelas'' Boulenger, 1903 – red-black ground snake *''Atractus esepe'' – indistinct ground snake *''Atractus favae'' (Filippo de Filippi, de Filippi, 1840) – Filippi's ground snake *''Atractus flammigerus'' (F. Boie, 1827) – flaming ground snake *''Atractus franciscopaivai'' *''Atractus francoi'' *''Atractus fuliginosus'' (Edward Hallowell (herpetologist), Hallowell, 1845) – Hallowell's ground snake *''Atractus gaigeae'' Savage, 1955 – Gaige's ground snake *''Atractus gigas'' – giant ground snake *''Atractus guentheri'' (O. E. H. Wucherer, Wucherer, 1861) – Günther's ground snake *''Atractus heliobelluomini'' *''Atractus heyeri'' Esqueda & Roy Wallace McDiarmid, McDiarmid, 2015 *''Atractus hoogmoedi'' *''Atractus hostilitractus'' *''Atractus imperfectus'' *''Atractus indistinctus'' Prado, 1940 – indistinct ground snake *''Atractus insipidus'' Roze, 1961 *''Atractus iridescens'' Mario Giacinto Peracca, Peracca, 1896 – iridescent ground snake *''Atractus lancinii'' Roze, 1961 – Lancini's ground snake *''Atractus lasallei'' Afrânio Pompílio Gastos do Amaral, Amaral, 1931 – Lasalle's ground snake *''Atractus latifrons'' (Günther, 1868) – broadhead ground snake *''Atractus lehmanni'' Boettger, 1898 – Lehmann's ground snake *''Atractus loveridgei'' Amaral, 1930 – Loveridge's ground snake *''Atractus macondo'' *''Atractus maculatus'' (Günther, 1858) – spotted ground snake *''Atractus major'' Boulenger, 1894 – brown ground snake *''Atractus manizalesensis'' Prado, 1940 *''Atractus mariselae'' Lancini, 1969 – Marisela's ground snake *''Atractus marthae'' Elson Meneses-Pelayo, Meneses-Pelayo & Passos, 2019 *''Atractus matthewi'' *''Atractus medusa'' *''Atractus melanogaster'' Franz Werner, F. Werner, 1916 – blackbelly ground snake *''Atractus melas'' Boulenger, 1908 – dark ground snake *''Atractus meridensis'' *''Atractus michaelsabini'' Arteaga, Quezada, Vieira, & Guayasamin, 2022 *''Atractus micheleae'' *''Atractus microrhynchus'' (Edward Drinker Cope, Cope, 1868) *''Atractus mijaresi'' , 2005 *''Atractus modestus'' Boulenger, 1894 – modest ground snake *''Atractus multicinctus'' (Giorgio Jan, Jan, 1865) – banded ground snake *''Atractus multidentatus'' *''Atractus nasutus'' *''Atractus natans'' *''Atractus nawa'' *''Atractus nicefori'' Amaral, 1930 – northern ground snake *''Atractus nigricauda'' Karl Patterson Schmidt, Schmidt & Warren F. Walker, Walker, 1943 – black-headed ground snake *''Atractus nigriventris'' Amaral, 1933 – black-ventered ground snake *''Atractus obesus'' Hymen Marx, Marx, 1960 – fat ground snake *''Atractus obtusirostris'' F. Werner, 1916 – bignose ground snake *''Atractus occidentalis'' Savage, 1955 – western ground snake *''Atractus occipitoalbus'' (Jan, 1862) – gray ground snake *''Atractus ochrosetrus'' *''Atractus oculotemporalis'' Amaral, 1932 – Hispanic ground snake *''Atractus orcesi'' *''Atractus pachacamac'' *''Atractus paisa'' *''Atractus pamplonensis'' Amaral, 1937 – Pamplona ground snake *''Atractus pantostictus'' *''Atractus paraguayensis'' F. Werner, 1924 *''Atractus paucidens'' Raymond Justin Marie Despax, Despax, 1910 – Despax's ground snake *''Atractus pauciscutatus'' Schmidt & Walker, 1943 – little-scaled ground snake *''Atractus paulus'' Melo-Sampaio & Venegas, 2023 *''Atractus peruvianus'' (Jan, 1862) – Peru ground snake *''Atractus poeppigi'' (Jan, 1862) – basin ground snake *''Atractus potschi'' *''Atractus punctiventris'' Amaral, 1933 – pointed ground snake *''Atractus resplendens'' F. Werner, 1901 – resplendent ground snake *''Atractus reticulatus'' (Boulenger, 1885) – reticulate ground snake *''Atractus riveroi'' Roze, 1961 – Juan A. Rivero, Rivero's ground snake *''Atractus ronnie'' *''Atractus roulei'' Despax, 1910 – Louis Roule, Roule's ground snake *''Atractus sanctaemartae'' Dunn, 1946 – St. Marta's ground snake *''Atractus sanguineus'' Prado, 1944 – bloody ground snake *''Atractus savagei'' David Salazar-Valenzuela, Salazar-Valenzuela, Torres-Carvajal & Passos, 2014 – Savage’s ground snake *''Atractus schach'' (F. Boie, 1827) – Schach's ground snake *''Atractus serranus'' Amaral, 1930 – Sao Paulo ground snake *''Atractus snethlageae'' Cunha & Nascimento, 1983 *''Atractus spinalis'' *''Atractus steyermarki'' Roze, 1958 *''Atractus stygius'' *''Atractus surucucu'' *''Atractus tamaensis'' *''Atractus tamessari'' *''Atractus taphorni'' *''Atractus tartarus'' *''Atractus thalesdelemai'' *''Atractus titanicus'' *''Atractus torquatus'' (A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854) – neckband ground snake *''Atractus touzeti'' *''Atractus trefauti'' Melo-Sampaio, Passos, Fouquet, Prudente & Torres-Carvajal, 2019 *''Atractus trihedrurus'' – southern ground snake *''Atractus trilineatus'' Johann Georg Wagler, Wagler, 1828 – three-lined ground snake *''Atractus trivittatus'' Amaral, 1933 – three-banded ground snake *''Atractus turikensis'' *''Atractus typhon'' *''Atractus ukupacha'' *''Atractus variegatus'' Prado, 1942 – variegated ground snake *''Atractus ventrimaculatus'' Boulenger, 1905 – speckled ground snake *''Atractus vertebralis'' Boulenger, 1904 – vertebral ground snake *''Atractus vertebrolineatus'' Prado, 1941 – striped ground snake *''Atractus vittatus'' *''Atractus wagleri'' Prado, 1945 – Wagler's ground snake *''Atractus werneri'' Peracca, 1914 – Werner's ground snake *''Atractus zebrinus'' *''Atractus zgap'' Arteaga, Quezada, Vieira, & Guayasamin, 2022 *''Atractus zidoki'' Jean-Pierre Gasc, Gasc & Miguel Trefaut Rodrigues, Rodriques, 1979 – Zidok's ground snake

Geographic range

Description

Reproduction

Species

References

Further reading