The Crotaphytidae, or collared lizards, are a family of desert-dwelling reptiles native to the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. Alternatively they are recognized as a subfamily, Crotaphytinae, within the clade Pleurodonta. They are very fast-moving animals, with long limbs and tails; some species are capable of achieving bipedal running at top speed. This species is carnivorous, feeding mainly on insects and smaller lizards. The two genera contain 12 species.
Cyrtodactylus is a diverse genus of Asian geckos, commonly known as bent-toed geckos, bow-fingered geckos, and forest geckos. The genus has 361 described species as of 2024, which makes it the largest of all gecko genera.
Anomochilidae is a family of snakes with one genus, Anomochilus, containing three species of snake. Members of the genus are known as anomochilids, or by the common names dwarf pipesnakes, lesser pipesnakes, and giant blind snakes. Initially created as Anomalochilus in 1890 for the species A. weberi, the genus was renamed in 1901 because the original name was already in use for a genus of beetles. Dwarf pipesnakes are small and cylindrical, with short, conical tails and small, rounded heads that are continuous with the neck. They have blackish to purplish-brown uppersides and dark brown or black undersides, with orange-red bands around the tail and a variety of pale markings on the snout and belly. All three species of dwarf pipesnake are endemic to Sundaland, where they are found on the Malay Peninsula and the islands of Sumatra and Borneo.
Johann Georg Wagler was a German herpetologist and ornithologist.
The Aniliidae are a monotypic family created for the monotypic genus Anilius that contains the single species Anilius scytale. Common names include the American pipe snake and false coral snake. It is found in South America. This snake possesses a vestigial pelvic girdle that is visible as a pair of cloacal spurs. It is ovoviviparous. It is non-venomous, and its diet consists mainly of amphibians and other reptiles. Two subspecies are recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.
The Uropeltidae, also commonly known as shield-tail snakes, shield-tailed snakes or earth snakes, are a family of primitive, nonvenomous, burrowing snakes native to Peninsular India and Sri Lanka. The name is derived from the Greek words ura ('tail') and pelte ('shield'), indicating the presence of the large keratinous shield at the tip of the tail. Seven or eight genera are recognized, depending on whether Teretrurus rhodogaster is treated in its own genus or as part of Brachyophidium. The family comprises over 50 species. These snakes are not well known in terms of their diversity, biology, and natural history.
Henophidia is a former superfamily of the suborder Serpentes (snakes) that contains boas, pythons and numerous other less-well-known snakes.
Oligodon is genus of colubrid snakes that was first described by Austrian zoologist Leopold Fitzinger in 1826. This genus is widespread throughout central and tropical Asia. The snakes of this genus are commonly known as kukri snakes.
Pantherophis is a genus of nonvenomous colubrid snakes endemic to central and eastern regions of North America. It consists of the North American ratsnakes, the foxsnakes, and the cornsnakes. The genus, which contains 10 recognized species, first appeared in the fossil record in the Middle Miocene around 16.3 million years ago. They are a large terrestrial snake genus that lack subocular scales. Originally classified in the genus Elaphe, phylogenetic studies have found this taxon to be closely related to Pituophis. As with all snakes Pantherophis is an obligate faunivore with a diet that consists of small mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, and even insects. While many species conservation status is categorized as "least concern", many local populations in some species have declined where some places have them listed as federally protected. The corn snake is a popular pet reptile, due to the availability of captive-bred animals, their low maintenance and calm disposition, and the variety of color morphs. There are other species of Pantherophis that are in the pet trade, though are not as popular as the corn snake.
Trimeresurus albolabris, the white-lipped pit viper or white-lipped tree viper, is a venomous pit viper species endemic to Southeast Asia.
The red-tailed pipe snake, red cylinder snake, or common pipe snake is a nonvenomous cylindrophiid snake species found in Southeast Asia. No subspecies are currently recognized.
The Alethinophidia are an infraorder of snakes that includes all snakes other than blind snakes and thread snakes. Snakes have long been grouped into families within Alethinophidia based on their morphology, especially that of their teeth. More modern phylogenetic hypotheses using genetic data support the recognition of 19 extant families, although the taxonomy of alethinophidian snakes has long been debated, and ultimately the decision whether to assign a particular clade to a particular Linnaean rank is arbitrary.
Anomochilus monticola, the Kinabalu giant blind snake, mountain pipe snake, or Mount Kinabalu dwarf pipesnake, is a species of snake in the dwarf pipesnake family Anomochilidae. It is endemic to Kinabalu Park in northern Borneo, where it inhabits montane and submontane rainforest at altitudes of 1,450–1,513 m (4,757–4,964 ft). Described by the herpetologist Indraneil Das and colleagues in 2008, the species is a stout, cylindrical snake with a small head and short, conical tail. It is the largest species in its genus, with a total length of 521 mm (20.5 in). It is mostly iridescent blue-black in color, with a deep brown belly, large pale horn-colored blotches along the underside, a chrome orange band around the tail, a pale creamy-yellow bar across the snout, and pale horn-colored speckles along its sides. It can be told apart from the other species in its genus by its large size, the absence of a stripe along its sides, and the lack of pale blotches on its back.
Muhtarophis barani, also known commonly as Baran's black-headed dwarf snake, is a species of snake in the monotypic genus Muhtarophis in the subfamily Colubrinae of the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to the Amanos Mountains of Turkey, and was discovered in 2007.
The Uropeltoidea, also known as uropeltoid snakes, are a superfamily of snakes that contains uropeltids and Asian pipesnakes.
The Amerophidia, also known as amerophidian snakes, are a clade of snakes that contains two families: Aniliidae and the boa-like Tropidophiidae.
The Colubroides are a clade in the suborder Serpentes (snakes). It contains over 85% of all the extant species of snakes. The largest family is Colubridae, but it also includes at least six other families, at least four of which were once classified as "Colubridae" before molecular phylogenetics helped in understanding their relationships. It has been found to be monophyletic.
Afrophidia is a clade of alethinophidian snakes comprising the groups Henophidia and Caenophidia, essentially making up the snakes people commonly associate with. The name refers to the deep split between Afrophidia and their sister taxon, Amerophidia, which originated in South American origin, and the afrophidians was recently hypothesized to represent a vicariant event of the breakup of Gondwanan South America and Africa.
The Elapoidea are a superfamily of snakes in the clade Colubroides, traditionally comprising the families Lamprophiidae and Elapidae. Advanced genomic sequence studies, however, have found lamprophiids to be paraphyletic in respect to elapids, and anywhere between four and nine families are now recognized.
Jodi J. L. Rowley is an Australian herpetologist and conservationist.
