Harman Patil (Editor)

Grayia (snake)

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Kingdom
  
Animalia

Class
  
Reptilia

Family
  
Colubridae

Scientific name
  
Grayia

Rank
  
Genus

Subphylum
  
Vertebrata

Suborder
  
Serpentes

Subfamily
  
Grayiinae

Phylum
  
Chordata

Order
  
Scaled reptiles

Similar
  
Gonionotophis, Hapsidophrys, Afronatrix, Etheridgeum

Grayia is a genus of colubrid snakes commonly referred to as African water snakes.

Contents

Etymology

The generic name, Grayia, is in honor of British herpetologist John Edward Gray.

Species

The following four species are recognized as being valid.

  • Grayia caesar (Günther, 1863) – Caesar's African water snake
  • Grayia ornata (Bocage, 1866) – ornate African water snake
  • Grayia smythii (Leach, 1818) – Smith's African water snake
  • Grayia tholloni Mocquard, 1897 – Thollon's African water snake

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

    The specific name, smythii, is in honor of Norwegian botanist Christen Smith. The specific name, tholloni, is in honor of François-Romain Thollon (1855–1896) who was a French collector of natural history specimens in Africa.

    References

    Grayia (snake) Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA