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Oligodon

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Oligodon
Western kukri snake (Oligodon affinis)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Subfamily: Colubrinae
Genus: Oligodon
Fitzinger, 1826[1]
Type species
Oligodon bitorquatus
Species

84 known species[2]

Oligodon is genus of colubrid snakes that was first described by Austrian zoologist Leopold Fitzinger in 1826.[1] This genus is widespread throughout central and tropical Asia. The snakes of this genus are commonly known as kukri snakes.[3]

Description

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The species in the genus Oligodon are egg eaters and are usually under 90 cm (35 in) in total length (including tail). Different species display widely variable patterns and colorations. They subsist mostly by scavenging the eggs of birds and reptiles. Besides eggs, species of this genus also feeds on lizards, frogs, and small rodents.

Oligodon is a rear-fanged snake genus. All member species have a set of enlarged teeth placed in the back of the upper jaws, as well as functional Duvernoy's glands. They are not dangerous to humans, though. Bites by some species have been reported to bleed excessively, suggesting presence of anticoagulants in the Duvernoy's gland secretions.[4] Species of Oligodon are mostly nocturnal, and live on the floor of mature forests.

The common name of the genus comes from the kukri, a distinctively shaped Nepalese knife, which is similar in shape to the broad, flattened, curved hind teeth of Oligodon species. These teeth are specially adapted for their main diet of eggs; the teeth cut open eggs as they are being swallowed by the snake, allowing for easier digestion.[citation needed]

At least three species (O. fasciolatus, O. formosanus and O. ocellatus) will slice open the abdomens of frogs and toads and devour their internal organs, before finally swallowing the prey whole (if the prey is not too large to be swallowed). That toads can be swallowed whole suggests that at least some species are immune to toad bufotoxin.[5]

Species

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There are 84 recognized species in the genus Oligodon according to Reptile Database as of April 2023.[2]

The source column gives direct links to the sources used:

EX - Extinct, EW - Extinct in the Wild
CR - Critically Endangered, EN - Endangered, VU - Vulnerable
NT - Near Threatened, LC - Least Concern
DD - Data Deficient, NE - Not Evaluated

Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Oligodon.

Image Common name Species Geographic range Status Source
Western kukri snake, Malabar brown kukri snake O. affinis

Günther, 1862

India (Kerala, Tamil Nadu) LC IUCN RDB
Light-barred kukri snake O. albocinctus

(Cantor, 1839)[6]

Nepal, Bangladesh, India (Assam, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh), Myanmar, Vietnam, China (Tibet, Yunnan) RDB
Northern short-headed snake O. ancorus

(Girard, 1858)

Philippines (Mindoro, Luzon) NT IUCN RDB
Annam kukri snake O. annamensis

Leviton, 1953

Vietnam (Lam Dang Province) DD IUCN RDB
Spotted kukri snake, ringed kukri snake O. annulifer

(Boulenger, 1893)

Brunei, Malaysia (Sabah, Sarawak) LC IUCN RDB
Russet kukri snake, common kukri snake, banded kukri O. arnensis

(Shaw, 1802)

Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, India (West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab), Pakistan, Nepal RDB
Barron's kukri snake O. barroni

(M.A. Smith, 1916)

Thailand, Southern Vietnam, Cambodia, South Laos LC IUCN RDB
Javanese mountain kukri snake, Boie's kukri snake O. bitorquatus

F. Boie, 1827

Indonesia (Java, possibly South Sumatra and Sumbawa) LC IUCN RDB
Double-striped kukri snake O. bivirgatus

T. Qian, S. Qi, J. Shi, Y. Lu, R.W. Jenkins, Y. Mo & P. Li, 2021

China (Hainan) RDB
Boo-Liat's kukri snake O. booliati [7] Leong & Grismer, 2004 Malaysia (Tioman island) CR IUCN RDB
Short-tailed kukri snake, shorthead kukri snake O. brevicauda

Günther, 1862

India (Tamil Nadu, Kerala) VU IUCN RDB
Templeton's kukri snake O. calamarius

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Sri Lanka EN RDB
Assam kukri snake O. catenatus

(Blyth, 1854)

India, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, South China (Guangdong, Guangxi) RDB
Chinese kukri snake O. chinensis

(Günther, 1888)

southern China, northern Vietnam LC IUCN RDB
Churah Valley kukri snake O. churahensis

Mirza, Bhardwaj & Patel, 2021

India (Himachal Pradesh) [8]
Black cross-barred kukri snake, ashy kukri snake, golden kukri snake, Günther's kukri snake O. cinereus

(Günther, 1864)

India (Assam, Arunachal Pradesh), Bangladesh, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand, peninsular Malaysia, China (Yunnan, Hong Kong, Hainan, Guangxi, Fujian, Guangdong) LC IUCN RDB
O. condaoensis

S.N. Nguyen, V.D.H. Nguyen, S.H. Le & R. Murphy, 2016

S Vietnam (Hon Ba Island) RDB
Pegu kukri snake O. cruentatus

(Günther, 1868)

Myanmar LC IUCN RDB
O. culaochamensis

S.N. Nguyen et al., 2017

Vietnam RDB
North-east Indian kukri snake, Cantor's kukri snake O. cyclurus

(Cantor, 1839)[9]

India (Assam), Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, China (Yunnan), Nepal, Bangladesh LC IUCN RDB
O. deuvei [10] David, G. Vogel &
van Rooijen, 2008 		Cambodia, southern Vietnam, Laos, North East Thailand LC IUCN RDB
Gray's kukri snake, Bengalese kukri snake O. dorsalis

(Gray & Hardwicke, 1835)

India (Assam), Bhutan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand RDB
Eberhardt's kukri snake O. eberhardti

Pellegrin, 1910

Vietnam, China (Guangxi, Fujian), possibly Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar LC IUCN RDB
Nagarkot kukri snake O. erythrogaster

Boulenger, 1907

Central and East Nepal, India (Sikkim) RDB
Red-striped kukri snake, Namsang kukri snake O. erythrorhachis

Wall, 1910

India (Arunachal Pradesh) VU IUCN RDB
Jewelled kukri snake, Everett's kukri snake[11] O. everetti

Boulenger, 1893

Indonesia (Kalimantan), Malaysia (Sabah) LC IUCN RDB
Small-banded kukri snake, fasciolated kukri snake O. fasciolatus

(Günther, 1864)

Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam LC IUCN RDB
Forbes' kukri snake[12] O. forbesi

(Boulenger, 1883)

Indonesia (Selaru and Yamdena in Tanimbar Islands) NT IUCN RDB
Taiwan kukri snake, Formosa kukri snake O. formosanus

(Günther, 1872)

Vietnam, Taiwan, South Japan (Ryukyu Islands, primarily Okinawa, Miyako and Yaeyama Islands), South China (Chekiang, Jiangxi, Fujian, Guangdong, Nan Ao Island, Hainan, Guangxi, Hong Kong, Zhejiang, Yunnan) RDB
Hampton's kukri snake O. hamptoni

Boulenger, 1918

Myanmar DD IUCN RDB
Hua Hin Kukri Snake O. huahin[13] Pauwels, Larsen, Suthanthangjai, David & Sumontha, 2017 Thailand (Hua Hin) DD
Inornate kukri snake, unicolored kukri snake O. inornatus

(Boulenger, 1914)

Cambodia, North and East Thailand LC IUCN RDB
Jintakune's kukri snake O. jintakunei [14] Pauwels, Wallach, David, Chanhome, 2002 South Thailand DD IUCN RDB
Grey kukri snake, Joynson's kukri snake O. joynsoni

(M.A. Smith, 1917)

northern Thailand, possibly Laos, Myanmar, China (Yunnan) LC IUCN RDB
Walnut kukri snake O. juglandifer

(Wall, 1909)

India (Sikkim), West Bhutan VU IUCN RDB
O. kampucheaensis[15] Neang, Grismer & Daltry, 2012 Cambodia RDB
coral red kukri snake O. kheriensis[16] Acharji & Ray, 1936 India (Uttar Pradesh), Southwest Nepal RDB
Lacroix kukri snake[17] O. lacroixi

Angel & Bourret, 1933

China (Sichuan, Yunnan), Vietnam VU IUCN RDB
Medog kukri snake O. lipipengi

Jiang, Wang, Li, Ding, Ding & Che, 2020

China (Tibet) RDB
O. lungshenensis

Zheng & Huang, 1978

China (Chongqing, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hunan) NT IUCN RDB
Angel's kukri snake O. macrurus

(Angel, 1927)

Vietnam DD IUCN RDB
Barred short-headed snake, spotted kukri snake O. maculatus

(Taylor, 1918)

Philippines (Mindanao) LC IUCN RDB
Arakan kukri snake, McDougall's kukri snake O. mcdougalli

Wall, 1905

Myanmar LC IUCN RDB
Bluebelly kukri snake O. melaneus

Wall, 1909

India RDB
Abor Hills kukri snake O. melanozonatus

Wall, 1922

India, China (Tibet) RDB
Sulu short-headed snake, Meyerink's kukri snake O. meyerinkii

(Steindachner, 1891)

Philippine Islands (Bongao, Jolo, Papahang, Sibutu, Tawi-Tawi in Sulu Archipelago), possibly Malaysia (Sabah) EN IUCN RDB
Spotted-bellied short-headed snake, Luzon kukri snake O. modestus

Günther, 1864

Philippines (Mindanao, Negros, Tablas, Panay, Cebu, possibly Luzon) VU IUCN RDB
Morice's kukri snake[18] O. moricei [10] David, G. Vogel & van Rooijen, 2008 Southern Vietnam DD IUCN RDB
Cambodian kukri snake, Mouhot's kukri snake[18] O. mouhoti

(Boulenger, 1914)

Cambodia, East Thailand LC IUCN RDB
Nagao kukri snake O. nagao[19] David, T.Q. Nguyen, T. Nguyen, Jiang, T. Chen, Teynié & Ziegler, 2012 Northern Vietnam, Southwest China (Guangxi), Laos RDB
Nikhil's kukri snake O. nikhili

Whitaker & Dattatri, 1982

India (Tamil Nadu) DD IUCN RDB
Palawan kukri snake, Palawan short-headed snake O. notospilus

Günther, 1873

Philippine Islands (Palawan, Busuanga, Balabac, Mindanao) RDB
Eyed kukri snake, ocellated kukri snake O. ocellatus

(Morice, 1875)

Cambodia, Lao, southern Vietnam LC IUCN RDB
Eight-lined kukri snake, eight-striped kukri snake, Grace's kukri snake O. octolineatus

(Schneider, 1801)

Brunei, Indonesia (Java, Borneo, Sumatra), Malaysia (Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, Sarawak), Singapore LC IUCN RDB
Ornate kukri snake O. ornatus

Van Denburgh, 1909

China (Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Zhejiang), Taiwan, LC IUCN RDB
Perkin's short-headed snake O. perkinsi

(Taylor, 1925)

Philippines (Palawan, Culion and Calauit Islands) NT IUCN RDB
Petronella's[20] kukri snake O. petronellae

Roux, 1917

Indonesia (Sumatra) DD IUCN RDB
Pha-Ngan kukri snake O. phangan

Pauwels, Thongyai, Chantong & Sumontha, 2021

Thailand (Surat Thani Province: Pha-Ngan Island) RDB
O. planiceps

(Boulenger, 1888)

Myanmar LC IUCN RDB
Pulau Weh kukri snake O. praefrontalis

F. Werner, 1913

Indonesia (Weh Island) DD IUCN RDB
O. promsombuti

Pauwels, Thongyai, Chantong, & Sumontha, 2021

Thailand (Surat Thani Province, Trang Province: Na Yong District) RDB
Bleeker's Kukri Snake O. propinquus

Jan, 1862

Indonesia (Java) RDB
False striped kukri snake O. pseudotaeniatus[10] David, G. Vogel & van Rooijen, 2008 Thailand LC IUCN RDB
O. pulcherrimus

F. Werner, 1909

Indonesia (Sumatra) VU IUCN RDB
Purple kukri snake, brown kukri snake O. purpurascens

(Schlegel, 1837)

Brunei, Indonesia (Bali, Java, Kalimantan, Sumatra), Malaysia (Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, Sarawak), Singapore, Thailand LC IUCN RDB
Long-snouted kukri snake O. rostralis

H.N. Nguyen, Tran, L.H. Nguyen, Neang, Yushchenko & Poyarkov, 2020

Vietnam
Russell's kukri snake O. russelius

(Daudin, 1803)

India, Nepal
Saint Girons' kukri snake[21] O. saintgironsi [3] David, G. Vogel & Pauwels, 2008 Vietnam, Cambodia DD IUCN RDB
Sai Yok Kukri Snake O. saiyok[22] Sumontha, Kunya, Dangsri & Pauwels, 2017 Thailand (Kanchanaburi) DD
Half-keeled kukri snake, barred kukri snake, banded kukri snake O. signatus

(Günther, 1864)

Indonesia (Sumatra), Malaysia (Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah, Sarawak), Singapore LC IUCN RDB
Splendid kukri snake O. splendidus

(Günther, 1875)

Myanmar LC IUCN RDB
Duméril's kukri snake O. sublineatus

A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854

Sri Lanka VU IUCN RDB
Striped kukri snake O. taeniatus

(Günther, 1861)

Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, possibly China (Yunnan) LC IUCN RDB
Streaked Kukri snake, Loos snake O. taeniolatus

(Jerdon, 1853)

Afghanistan, India, Iran, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Turkmenistan LC IUCN RDB
Teynié's kukri snake O. teyniei

David, Hauser & G. Vogel, 2022

Laos
Mandalay kukri snake, Theobald's kukri snake O. theobaldi

(Günther, 1868)

Bangladesh, Myanmar LC IUCN RDB
Tillack's kukri snake O. tillacki

Bandara, Ganesh, Kanishka, Danushka, Sharma, P. Campbell, Ineich, G. Vogel & Amarasinghe, 2022

India
O. tolaki

Amarasinghe, Henkanaththegedara, Campbell, Riyanto, Hallermann & G. Vogel, 2021

Indonesia (Southeast Sulawesi) RDB
O. torquatus

(Boulenger, 1888)

Myanmar DD IUCN RDB
Travancore kukri snake O. travancoricus

Beddome, 1877

India (Kerala, Tamil Nadu) DD IUCN RDB
Three-lined kukri snake O. trilineatus

(A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854)

Indonesia (Nias, Siberut, Sumatra) LC IUCN RDB
Langbian kukri snake O. tuani

S.N. Nguyen, Le, Vo & R. Murphy, 2022

Vietnam RDB
O. unicolor

(Kopstein, 1926)

Indonesia (Selaru, Yamdena) NT IUCN RDB
Jerdon's kukri snake O. venustus

(Jerdon, 1853)

India (Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu) LC IUCN RDB
Dark-spined kukri snake, vertebral kukri snake O. vertebralis

(Günther, 1865)

Indonesia (Kalimantan), Malaysia (Sabah) DD IUCN RDB
Bleeker's kukri snake O. waandersi

(Bleeker, 1860)

Indonesia (Java, Sulawesi, Buton, Sula Islands) RDB
Wagner's kukri snake O. wagneri

David & G. Vogel, 2012

Indonesia (Nias) RDB
yellow-striped kukri snake O. woodmasoni

(Sclater, 1891)

India (Nicobar Islands, possibly Andaman Islands) RDB

References

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  1. ^ a b Fitzinger LJ (1826). Neue Classification der Reptilien nach ihren natürlichen Verwandtschaften. Nebst einer Verwandtschafts-tafel und einem Verzeichnisse der Reptilien-Sammlung des K. K. zoologischen Museums zu Wien. Vienna: J.G. Heubner. five unnumbered + 67 pp. + one plate. (Oligodon, new genus, p. 56). (in German and Latin).
  2. ^ a b "Search results Genus: Oligodon – Exact match". Reptile Database. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  3. ^ a b David P; Vogel G; Pauwels OSG (2008). "A new species of the genus Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 (Squamata: Colubridae) from northern Vietnam, southern China and central Laos" (PDF). Zootaxa. 1939: 19–37. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.1939.1.3.
  4. ^ Wüster W, Cox MJ (1992). "Defensive hemipenis display in the kukri snake Oligodon cyclurus ". Journal of Herpetology. 26 (2): 238–241. doi:10.2307/1564874. JSTOR 1564874.
  5. ^ Bringsøe, Henrik; Holden, James (2021-02-15). "Yet another kukri snake piercing an anuran abdomen: Oligodon ocellatus (Morice, 1875) eats Duttaphrynus melanostictus (Schneider, 1799) in Vietnam". Herpetozoa. 34: 57–59. doi:10.3897/herpetozoa.34.e62689. ISSN 2682-955X.
  6. ^ Bombay Natural History Society (2005). Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. Bombay Natural History Society. p. 21. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
  7. ^ Leong TM, Grismer LL (2004). "A new species of kukri snake, Oligodon (Colubridae), from Pulau Tioman, West Malaysia" (PDF). Asiatic Herpetological Research. 10: 12–16. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2012-05-06.
  8. ^ Mirza, Zeeshan A.; Bhardwaj, Virender Kumar; Patel, Harshil (2021). "A New Species of the Genus Oligodon Boie in Fitzinger, 1826 (Reptilia, Serpentes) from the Western Himalayas". Evolutionary Systematics 5 (2): 335–345. (Oligodon churahensis, new species).
  9. ^ Akonda, A.W.; Khan, M.A.; Khan, S.M.M.H.; Haque, M.N.; Khan, M.M.H.; Ahmed, R.; Ameen, M.; Islam, M.A.; Joarder, N.B.; Nishat, A. (2000). Red book of threatened mammals of Bangladesh. IUCN Bangladesh. p. 29. ISBN 978-984-746-004-8. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
  10. ^ a b c David P, Vogel G, van Rooijen J (2008). "A revision of the Oligodon taeniatus (Günther, 1861) group (Squamata: Colubridae), with the description of three new species from the Indochinese Region" (PDF). Zootaxa. 1965: 1–49. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.1965.1.1.
  11. ^ 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. (Oligodon everetti, p. 86).
  12. ^ Beolens et al. (2011). p. 91.
  13. ^ Pauwels, Olivier S. G.; Larsen, Henning; Suthanthangjai, Winai; David, Patrick; Sumontha, Montri (2017). "A new kukri snake (Colubridae: Oligodon) from Hua Hin District, and the first record of O. Deuvei from Thailand". Zootaxa. 4291 (3): 531. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4291.3.6.
  14. ^ Pauwels OSG, Wallach V, David P, Chanhome L (2002). "A new species of Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 (Serpentes, Colubridae) from southern peninsular Thailand". Natural History Journal of Chulalongkorn University. 2 (2): 7–18.
  15. ^ Neang T, Grismer LL, Daltry JC (2012). "A new species of kukri snake (Colubridae: Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826) from the Phnom Samkos Wildlife Sanctuary, Cardamom Mountains, southwest Cambodia Archived 2015-09-24 at the Wayback Machine". Zootaxa 3388: 41–55.
  16. ^ Acharji MN, Ray HC (1936). "A new species of Oligodon from the United Provinces (India)". Records of the Indian Museum, Calcutta 38: 519–520.
  17. ^ Beolens et al. (2011). p. 149.
  18. ^ a b Beolens et al. (2011). p. 183.
  19. ^ David P, Nguyen TQ, Nguyen TT, Jiang K, Chen T, Teynié A, Ziegler T (2012). "A new species of the genus Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 (Squamata: Colubridae) from northern Vietnam, southern China and central Laos". Zootaxa. 3498: 45–62. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3498.1.3.
  20. ^ Beolens et al. (2011). pp. 70, 205.
  21. ^ Beolens et al. (2011). p. 231.
  22. ^ Sumontha, Montri; Kunya, Kirati; Dangsri, Siriwat; Pauwels, Olivier S. G. (2017). "Oligodon saiyok, a new limestone-dwelling kukri snake (Serpentes: Colubridae) from Kanchanaburi Province, western Thailand". Zootaxa. 4294 (3): 316. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4294.3.2.
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Further reading

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  • Green, Marc D.; Orlov, Nikolai L.; Murphy, Robert W. (2010). "Toward a Phylogeny of the Kukri Snakes, Genus Oligodon ". Asian Herpetological Research 2 (1): 1-21.
  • Smith MA (1943). The Fauna of British India, Ceylon and Burma, Including the Whole of the Indo-Chinese Sub-region. Reptilia and Amphibia. Vol. III.—Serpentes. London: Secretary of State for India. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xii + 583 pp. (Genus Oligodon, pp. 195–201).
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