Liophidium pattoni

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Superphylum: Deuterostomia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Infraphylum: Gnathostomata
Megaclassis: Osteichthyes
Superclassis: Sarcopterygii
Superclassis: Tetrapoda
Cladus: Reptiliomorpha
Cladus: Amniota
Classis: Reptilia
Cladus: Eureptilia
Cladus: Romeriida
Subclassis: Diapsida
Cladus: Sauria
Infraclassis: Lepidosauromorpha
Superordo: Lepidosauria
Ordo: Squamata
Subordo: Serpentes
Infraordo: Caenophidia
Superfamilia: Colubroidea

Familia: Colubridae
Subfamilia: Lamprophiinae
Genus: Liophidium
Species: Liophidium pattoni

Liophidium pattoni is a species of snake in the subfamily Pseudoxyrhophiinae of the family Lamprophiidae.[2] The species is endemic to Madagascar. Little is known about the snake as it was recently described in 2010, although its existence had been known for some decades (one was pictured in a 1996 guidebook[3]) before a specimen could be caught for detailed study.
Underside

Etymology

The specific name, pattoni, is in honor of American mammalogist James L. Patton.[4]
Geographic range and habitat

L. pattoni is known to occur in two sites in Madagascar, the Masoala peninsula and the Makira Plateau.[1] It has been found in primary rainforest vegetation[5] at elevations up to 1,000 m (3,300 ft).[1]
The Masoala peninsula of Madagascar (inset) where L. pattoni occurs.
Taxonomy

Originally described in 2010, Liophidium pattoni is a member of the pseudoxyrhophiine genus Liophidium, which is a genus of lamprophiid snakes. Which means that Liophidium pattoni is harmless to humans. Previously, nine species of Liophidium from Madagascar had been formally described. Molecular evidence indicates that the closest sister taxon to L. pattoni is L. rhodogaster (Schlegel, 1837).[5]
Description

L. pattoni can easily be distinguished from other members of the genus Liophidium by its unique color pattern. This species is most similar in external morphology to L. torquatum. It is a thin-bodied snake with a black dorsum with discontinuous pink stripes that fade to blue-gray and white towards the posterior. The ventral coloration is bright yellow with a pink-red ventral tail region. An adult male can be 417 mm (16.4 in) in total length (including tail), and have a snout-vent length (SVL) of 329 mm (13.0 in), and a head length of 12.4 mm (0.49 in).[5]
Diet

L. pattoni is a terrestrial hunter, and while its diet is largely unknown, the holotype was collected with a Malagasy ground skink (Madascincus melanopleura) in its stomach, suggesting that it feeds on small terrestrial rainforest fauna.[5]
References

Vences, M.; Rakotondrazafy, N.A.; Rabibisoa, N.; Randriamahazo, H. (2011). "Liophidium pattoni". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2011: e.T193485A8862629. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2011-2.RLTS.T193485A8862629.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
Liophidium pattoni at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 21 October 2018.
Bradt, Hilary; Schuurman, Derek; Nick Garbutt (1996). Madagascar Wildlife: A Visitor's Guide (1st ed.). Bradt Travel Guides. ISBN 1-898323-40-2.
Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Liophidium pattoni, p. 201).
Vieites D, Ratsoavina FM, Randrianiaina R-D, Nagy ZT, Glaw F, Vences M (2010). "A rhapsody of colours from Madagascar: discovery of a remarkable new snake of the genus Liophidium and its phylogenetic relationships" (PDF). Salamandra. 46: 1–10. (Liophidium pattoni, new species)