Colubridae (, commonly known as colubrids , from la, coluber, 'snake') is a

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

snake Snakes are elongated, limbless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales. Many species of snakes have skulls with several more j ...

s. With 249 genera, it is the largest snake family. The earliest species of the family date back to the Oligocene epoch. Colubrid snakes are found on every continent except Antarctica.

Description

While most colubrids are not venomous (or have venom that is not known to be harmful to humans) and are mostly harmless, a few groups, such as genus '' Boiga'', can produce medically significant injuries. In addition, the boomslang, the twig snakes, and the Asian genus ''

Rhabdophis ''Rhabdophis'' is a genus of snakes in the subfamily Natricinae of the family Colubridae. Species in the genus ''Rhabdophis'' are generally called keelback snakes, and are found primarily in Southeast Asia. Toxicity ''Rhabdophis'' is often thou ...

'' have caused human fatalities. Some colubrids are described as

opisthoglyphous A snake skeleton consists primarily of the skull, vertebrae, and ribs, with only vestigial remnants of the limbs. Skull The skull of a snake is a very complex structure, with numerous joints to allow the snake to swallow prey far larger than it ...

(often called "rear-fanged"), meaning they have elongated, grooved teeth located in the back of their upper jaws. It is likely that opisthoglyphous dentition evolved many times in the history of snakes and is an evolutionary precursor to the fangs of

vipers The Viperidae (vipers) are a family of snakes found in most parts of the world, except for Antarctica, Australia, Hawaii, Madagascar, and various other isolated islands. They are venomous and have long (relative to non-vipers), hinged fangs th ...

and

elapids Elapidae (, commonly known as elapids ; grc, ἔλλοψ ''éllops'' "sea-fish") is a family of snakes characterized by their permanently erect fangs at the front of the mouth. Most elapids are venomous, with the exception of the genus Emydocep ...

, which are located in the front of the mouth.

Classification

In the past, the Colubridae were not a natural group, as many were more closely related to other groups, such as

, than to each other. This family was historically used as a "

wastebasket taxon Wastebasket taxon (also called a wastebin taxon, dustbin taxon or catch-all taxon) is a term used by some taxonomists to refer to a taxon that has the sole purpose of classifying organisms that do not fit anywhere else. They are typically defined ...

" for snakes that do not fit elsewhere. Until recently, colubrids were basically colubroids that were not

, viperids, or '' Atractaspis''. However, recent research in molecular phylogenetics has stabilized the classification of historically "colubrid" snakes and the family as currently defined is a monophyletic clade, although additional research will be necessary to sort out all the relationships within this group. As of May 2018, eight subfamilies are recognized.

Current subfamilies

Sibynophiinae Sibynophiinae is a small subfamily of colubroid snakes, sometimes referred to as a family (Sibynophiidae). This group has also been called Scaphiodontophiinae but since the name Sibynophiinae is older, it has priority. They are commonly called h ...

– two genera

Natricinae The Natricinae are a subfamily of colubroid snakes, sometimes referred to as a family (Natricidae). The subfamily comprises 37 genera. Members include many very common snake species, such as the European grass snakes, and the North American wa ...

– 36 genera (sometimes given as family Natricidae) Pseudoxenodontinae – two genera

Dipsadinae Dipsadinae is a large subfamily of colubroid snakes, sometimes referred to as a family (Dipsadidae). They are found in most of the Americas, including the West Indies, and are most diverse in South America. There are more than 700 species. Dips ...

– 100 genera (sometimes given as family Dipsadidae) Grayiinae – one genus *'' Grayia'' Calamariinae – seven genera Ahaetuliinae – five genera

Colubrinae The Colubrinae are a subfamily of the family Colubridae of snakes. It includes numerous genera, and although taxonomic sources often disagree on the exact number, The Reptile Database lists 717 species in 92 genera as of September 2019. It is t ...

– 94 genera

Former subfamilies

These taxa have been at one time or another classified as part of the Colubridae, but are now either classified as parts of other families, or are no longer accepted because all the species within them have been moved to other (sub)families. *Subfamily Aparallactinae (now a subfamily of Lamprophiidae, sometimes combined with Atractaspidinae) *Subfamily Boiginae (now part of

) *Subfamily Boodontinae (some of which now treated as subfamily Grayiinae of the new Colubridae, others moved to family Lamprophiidae as part of subfamilies Lamprophiinae, Pseudaspidinae and Pseudoxyrhophiidae, which are now sometimes treated as families) *Subfamily Dispholidinae (now part of Colubrinae) *Subfamily Homalopsinae (now family Homalopsidae) *Subfamily Lamprophiinae (now a subfamily of Lamprophiidae) *Subfamily Lycodontinae (now part of Colubrinae) *Subfamily Lycophidinae (now part of Lamprophiidae) *Subfamily Pareatinae (now family

Pareidae Pareidae is a small family of snakes found largely in southeast Asia, with an isolated subfamily endemic to southwestern India. It encompasses 42 species in four genera divided into two subfamilies: Pareinae and Xylophiinae. Both families are tho ...

, sometimes incorrectly spelled Pareatidae) *Subfamily Philothamninae (now part of Colubrinae) *Subfamily Psammophiinae (now a subfamily of Lamprophiidae) *Subfamily Pseudoxyrhophiinae (now a subfamily of Lamprophiidae) *Subfamily Xenoderminae (now family Xenodermidae, sometimes incorrectly spelled Xenodermatidae) *Subfamily Xenodontinae (which many authors put in

/ Dipsadidae)

Fossil record

The Pliocene ( Blancan) fossil record in the

Ringold Formation The Ringold Formation is a geologic formation in Eastern Washington, United States. The formation consists of sediment laid down by the Columbia River following the flood basalt eruptions of the Columbia River Basalt Group, and reaches up to thi ...

of Adams County, Washington has yielded fossils from a number of colubrids including '' Elaphe pliocenica'', '' Elaphe vulpina'', '' Lampropeltis getulus'', '' Pituophis catenifer'', a '' Thamnophis'' species, and the extinct genus '' Tauntonophis''.

References

Citations

Bibliography

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External links

Psammophids
at Life Is Short, but Snakes Are Long {{Authority control Cenozoic reptiles Extant Oligocene first appearances Snake families Taxa described in 1881 Taxa named by Nicolaus Michael Oppel