Integrative approach resolves the systematics of barred wolf snakes in the <i>Lycodon striatus</i> complex (Reptilia, Colubridae)

Amarasinghe, A.A. Thasun; Masroor, Rafaqat; Lalremsanga, Hmar Tlawmte; Weerakkody, Sanjaya; Ananjeva, Natalia B.; Campbell, Patrick D.; Kennedy-Gold, Stevie Rose; Bandara, Sanjaya K.; Bragin, Andrey M.; ATTHANAGODA, ANUSHA GAYAN; Sharma, Vivek; Sayyed, Amit; Biakzuala, Lal; Kanishka, Suneth A.; Ganesh, S.R.; Ineich, Ivan; Silva, Anslem de; Wickramasinghe, L. J. Mendis; Seneviratne, Sampath S.; Poyarkov, Nikolay A.; Vogel, Gernot; Jablonski, Daniel

doi:10.1111/zsc.12587

Cited by 4 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 90 publications

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“…Interestingly, several Indo-Malayan reptiles found in Middle and Southwest Asia are recognized as separate taxa. Examples include Boiga trigonata melanocephala ( Annandale, 1904 ), Lycodon bicolor ( Nikolsky, 1903b ) and Ptyas mucosa nigriceps Terentjev & Chernov, 1949 ( Orlov et al, 2018 ; Amarasinghe et al, 2023 ). Other species found in Middle/Southwest Asia whose close relatives originate from the Indo-Malayan realm include Naja oxiana Eichwald, 1831 and Eublepharis macularius Blyth, 1854b .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Kukri snakes Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 of the Western Palearctic with the resurrection of Contia transcaspica Nikolsky, 1902 (Reptilia, Squamata, Colubridae)

Lee,

Yushchenko,

Milto

et al. 2023

PeerJ

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The kukri snakes of the genus Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 reach the westernmost limits of their distribution in Middle and Southwest Asia (Afghanistan, Iran, and Turkmenistan), and the Palearctic portions of Pakistan. In this article, we review the systematics and distribution of the two species native to this region, Oligodon arnensis (Shaw, 1802) and Oligodon taeniolatus (Jerdon, 1853) based on an integrative approach combining morphological, molecular, and species distribution modeling (SDM) data. Phylogenetic analyses recover O. taeniolatus populations from Iran and Turkmenistan in a clade with the O. arnensis species complex, rendering the former species paraphyletic relative to O. taeniolatus sensu stricto on the Indian subcontinent. To correct this, we resurrect the name Contia transcaspica Nikolsky, 1902 from the synonymy of O. taeniolatus and assign it to populations in Middle–Southwest Asia. So far, Oligodon transcaspicus comb. et stat. nov. is known only from the Köpet–Dag Mountain Range of northeast Iran and southern Turkmenistan, but SDM mapping suggests it may have a wider range. Genetic samples of O. “arnensis” from northern Pakistan are nested in a clade sister to the recently described Oligodon churahensis Mirza, Bhardwaj & Patel, 2021, and are phylogenetically separate from O. arnensis sensu stricto in south India and Sri Lanka. Based on morphological similarity, the Afghanistan and Pakistan populations are assigned to Oligodon russelius (Daudin, 1803) and we synonymize O. churahensis with this species. Our investigation leads us to remove O. taeniolatus from the snake fauna of Afghanistan, Iran, and Turkmenistan, with the consequence that only Oligodon transcaspicus comb. et stat. nov. and O. russelius are present in these countries. Additional studies are needed to resolve the taxonomy of the O. taeniolatus and O. arnensis species complexes on the Indian subcontinent, and an updated key for both groups is provided.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Kukri snakes Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 of the Western Palearctic with the resurrection of Contia transcaspica Nikolsky, 1902 (Reptilia, Squamata, Colubridae)

Lee,

Yushchenko,

Milto

et al. 2023

PeerJ

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“…This is especially true in cases involving the incomplete lineage sorting (ILS) of nuclear genes (Firneno et al, 2020). A large number of studies have shown that the use of mitogenome data can effectively identify specimens, discover cryptic species where few morphological differences can be observed (Liu et al, 2020; Zheng et al, 2020), and delimit species boundaries in species‐complexes with morphological variants that have puzzled taxonomists for many years (Amarasinghe et al, 2023; Zhu et al, 2022).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Limits of mitochondrial genes in delimiting species within a Carbula species complex (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae)

Zhou,

Wang,

et al. 2023

Arch Insect Biochem Physiol

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Molecular data has become a powerful tool for species delimitation, particularly among those that present limited morphological differences; while the mitochondrial genome, with its moderate length, low cost of sequencing and fast lineage sorting, has emerged as a practical data set. Due to the limited morphological differences among the closely related species of Carbula Stål 1865, the species boundaries between Carbula abbreviata (Motschulsky, 1866), Carbula humerigera (Uhler, 1860), and Carbula putoni (Jakovlev, 1876) have remained particularly unclear. In this study, we applied two phylogenetic reconstruction methods to two data sets (mitogenome and COI) to assess the phylogeny of Carbula distributed in Asia, and five species delimitation methods to determine the boundaries between East Asian Carbula species. Our phylogenetic analyses showed Carbula to be paraphyletic; the seven known species distributed within East Asia to form a single monophyletic group, and within this, C. abbreviata, C. humerigera, C. putoni and middle‐type to comprise a C. humerigera species complex. Our results show that mitogenome data alone, while effective in the differentiation of more distantly related Carbula species, is not sufficient to accurately delimit the species within this newly described complex.

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The nomenclatural status of “Anoplophallus maculatus” Cope, 1895, its consequences on the systematics of Lycodon subcinctus auctorum, and the description of a new species (Squamata: Colubridae)

NGUYEN,

LEE,

PAUWELS

et al. 2024

Zootaxa

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The Malayan banded wolf snake, Lycodon subcinctus (F. Boie, 1827) has a complicated taxonomic and nomenclatural history. For almost a century, the combination Anoplophallus maculatus Cope, 1895 has been applied to populations of L. subcinctus from southern China, with various authors recognizing the taxon maculatus as a subspecies (i.e., Lycodon subcinctus maculatus) or junior synonym. A recent study that proposed the elevation of Chinese L. subcinctus to species rank (as Lycodon “maculatus”) prompted us to re-investigate several nomenclatural issues relevant to Anoplophallus maculatus that have not been fully addressed in the literature. We show that Anoplophallus maculatus was not described as a new species, and actually refers to Megalops maculatus Hallowell, 1861, a Neotropical snake currently known as Leptodeira maculata (Dipsadinae). As a consequence, populations of L. subcinctus recently recognized as Lycodon “maculatus”, have no valid binomen applied to them. To resolve this issue, we provide a new species name for populations of L. subcinctus from China and include a morphological description based on specimens collected across all of mainland Southeast Asia. The new species, Lycodon neomaculatus sp. nov., occurs well outside of southern China, and inhabits Indochina (Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam) and eastern Myanmar. Lycodon neomaculatus sp. nov. is distinguished from both L. sealei and L. subcinctus by subtle differences in adult dorsal color pattern and body scalation. The distributions of L. neomaculatus sp. nov. and L. subcinctus sensu stricto appear to be allopatric, and the Isthmus of Kra region in peninsular Thailand may act as a biogeographic filter separating the two species.

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Integrative approach resolves the systematics of barred wolf snakes in the Lycodon striatus complex (Reptilia, Colubridae)

Abstract: The striated (barred) wolf-snake, Coluber striatus Shaw, 1802, is currently considered a widely distributed species in South and Central Asia, including peninsular India,

Cited by 4 publications

References 90 publications

Kukri snakes Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 of the Western Palearctic with the resurrection of Contia transcaspica Nikolsky, 1902 (Reptilia, Squamata, Colubridae)

Kukri snakes Oligodon Fitzinger, 1826 of the Western Palearctic with the resurrection of Contia transcaspica Nikolsky, 1902 (Reptilia, Squamata, Colubridae)

Limits of mitochondrial genes in delimiting species within a Carbula species complex (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae)

The nomenclatural status of “Anoplophallus maculatus” Cope, 1895, its consequences on the systematics of Lycodon subcinctus auctorum, and the description of a new species (Squamata: Colubridae)

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