''Lycodryas'' is a

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

snake Snakes are elongated limbless reptiles of the suborder Serpentes (). Cladistically squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales much like other members of the group. Many species of snakes have s ...

s in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Pseudoxyrhophiidae The Pseudoxyrhophiidae is a family of elapoid snakes, found mostly in Madagascar. They were formerly placed as a subfamily of the Lamprophiidae, but have been more recently identified as a distinct family. It contains about 22 genera Genus ...

. The genus contains nine

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

, seven of which are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the island of

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

, and two to the

Comoros The Comoros, officially the Union of the Comoros, is an archipelagic country made up of three islands in Southeastern Africa, located at the northern end of the Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean. Its capital and largest city is Moroni, ...

Islands. Its

sister taxon In phylogenetics, a sister group or sister taxon, also called an adelphotaxon, comprises the closest relative(s) of another given unit in an evolutionary tree. Definition The expression is most easily illustrated by a cladogram: Taxon A and ...

is '' Phisalixella''. All of the species are harmless to humans.

Ecology

''Lycodryas'' are

arboreal Arboreal locomotion is the locomotion of animals in trees. In habitats in which trees are present, animals have evolved to move in them. Some animals may scale trees only occasionally (scansorial), but others are exclusively arboreal. The hab ...

snakes that are believed to be active hunters. However, their ecology is generally poorly known. Lycodryas citrinus 2

Description

''Lycodryas'' are markedly elongated, slender-bodied snakes with often striking coloration. The head is distinct. They typically have 8 (range: 7–9) upper labials and 6–10 lower labials, 1

loreal scale The lore (adj. loreal) is the region between the eyes and nostrils of birds, reptiles, and amphibians. Ornithology In ornithology, the lore is the region between the eye and bill on the side of a bird's head. This region is sometimes featherless ...

, 17–19 rows of

dorsal scales In snakes, the dorsal scales are the longitudinal series of plates that encircle the body, but do not include the ventral scales. Campbell JA, Lamar WW (2004). ''The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere''. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publis ...

at mid-body and 13 or 15 rows of dorsal scales at the last ventral, 185–284

ventral scales In snakes, the ventral scales or gastrosteges are the enlarged and transversely elongated scales that extend down the underside of the body from the neck to the anal scale. When counting them, the first is the anteriormost ventral scale that cont ...

, anal plate that is usually divided, and 70–130

subcaudal scales In snakes, the subcaudal scales are the enlarged plates on the underside of the tail. Wright AH, Wright AA (1957). ''Handbook of Snakes of the United States and Canada''. Comstock Publishing Associates, a Division of Cornell University Press. (7t ...

. The contracted pupil is a small vertical ellipse.

Species

The following nine

are recognized as being valid. *''

Lycodryas citrinus ''Lycodryas citrinus'' is a species of snake of the family Pseudoxyrhophiidae. Geographic range The snake is found in Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagasc ...

'' ( Domergue, 1995) *''

Lycodryas cococola ''Lycodryas cococola'' is a species of snakes of the family Pseudoxyrhophiidae. Geographic range Harmless to humans, the snake is found in Comoros The Comoros, officially the Union of the Comoros, is an archipelagic country made up of t ...

'' Hawlitschek,

Nagy Nagy () is a common Hungarian surname, meaning 'big'. The surname is also common among ethnic Hungarians in the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, where it is spelled Nađ () and may be transliterated in other languages as Nadj. In Romani ...

& Glaw, 2012 *''

Lycodryas gaimardii ''Lycodryas'' is a genus of snakes in the family Pseudoxyrhophiidae. The genus contains nine species, seven of which are endemic to the island of Madagascar, and two to the Comoros Islands. Its sister taxon is '' Phisalixella''. All of the speci ...

'' ( Schlegel, 1837) *'' Lycodryas granuliceps'' ( Boettger, 1877) *'' Lycodryas guentheri'' ( Boulenger, 1896) *'' Lycodryas inopinae'' (Domergue, 1995) *'' Lycodryas inornatus'' (Boulenger, 1896) *''

Lycodryas maculatus ''Lycodryas maculatus'', also known Common name, commonly as the spotted tree snake, is a species of snake in the Family (biology), family Pseudoxyrhophiidae. The species is Endemism, endemic to the Comoros. It is harmless to humans. Geographic ...

'' ( Günther, 1858) – spotted tree snake *'' Lycodryas pseudogranuliceps'' (Domergue, 1995) ''

Nota bene ( ; plural: ) is the Latin language, Latin phrase meaning ''note well''. In manuscripts, ''nota bene'' is abbreviated in upper-case as NB and N.B., and in lower-case as n.b. and nb; the editorial usages of ''nota bene'' and ''notate bene'' fi ...

'': A

binomial authority In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin grammatical forms, altho ...

in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than ''Lycodryas''.

Ecology

Description

Species

References

Further reading