''Smithophis'' 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

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...

Natricinae The Natricinae are a subfamily of colubroid snakes, sometimes referred to as a family (Natricidae). The subfamily comprises 36 genera. Members include many very common snake species, such as the European grass snakes, and the North American wa ...

of 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 ...

Colubridae Colubridae (, commonly known as colubrids , from , 'snake') is a family of snakes. With 249 genera, it is the largest snake family. The earliest fossil species of the family date back to the Late Eocene epoch, with earlier origins suspected. C ...

; the one species that was known prior to 2019 had been classified under the genus ''

Rhabdops ''Rhabdops'' is a genus of snakes in the subfamily Natricinae of the family Colubridae. The genus is endemic to the Western Ghats of India. Species The genus ''Rhabdops'' contains two recognized valid species: *''Rhabdops aquaticus'' – aquat ...

,'' but was removed in the process of erecting the new genus ''Smithophis''. The genus is

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 ...

Asia Asia ( , ) is the largest continent in the world by both land area and population. It covers an area of more than 44 million square kilometres, about 30% of Earth's total land area and 8% of Earth's total surface area. The continent, which ...

. It is named for

Malcolm Arthur Smith Malcolm Arthur Smith (1875 in New Malden, Surrey – 1958 in Ascot) was a herpetologist and physician working in the Malay Peninsula. Early life Smith was interested in reptiles and amphibians from an early age. After completing a degree in medi ...

, a British

herpetologist Herpetology (from Ancient Greek ἑρπετόν ''herpetón'', meaning "reptile" or "creeping animal") is a branch of zoology concerned with the study of amphibians (including frogs, salamanders, and caecilians (Gymnophiona)) and reptiles (in ...

who was active in Indian herpetology.

Species of ''Smithophis''

The following

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), ...

are recognized as being valid: *'' Smithophis arunachalensis'' – Arunachal rain snake, black and yellow smithophis *'' Smithophis atemporalis'' – Mizo rain snake, narrow-headed smithophis *''

Smithophis bicolor The brown trapezoid snake (''Smithophis bicolor'') is a species of snake found in India (Assam, Meghalaya; Arunachal Pradesh (Deban, Namdapha - Changlang district)), North Myanmar (Burma), and China (West Yunnan). While formerly classified under ...

'' – brown trapezoid snake, two-colored forest snake *'' Smithophis linearis'' – Jingpo mountain stream snake, lined smithophis *'' Smithophis mizoramensis'' Zeeshan A. Mirza, Virender K. Bhardwaj, Jote Chawntual Lalmuanawma, Girish Choure, Hmar Tlawmte Lalremsanga, Mathipi Vabeiryureilai, Ashok Captain, Akshay Zagade and Harshil Patel. 2024. A New Species of Smithophis Giri et al. 2019 from the Indo-Burma Region. Diversity. 16(8); 480. DOI:doi.org/10.3390/d16080480 mdpi.com/2903710 - Mizoram rain snake. ''

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 ''Smithophis''.

References

Snake genera Taxa named by Veerappan Deepak {{Natricinae-stub