Kingdom Animalia Subphylum Vertebrata Order Squamata | Phylum Chordata Class Reptilia Suborder Serpentes | |
Polemon christyi, or the eastern snake-eater, is a species of venomous rear-fanged snake in the family Atractaspididae. It is endemic to Africa.
Contents
Etymology
The specific name, christyi, is in honor of Cuthbert Christy, who presented the type specimen to the British Museum (Natural History).
Geographic range
It is found in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Malawi, Uganda, Tanzania, and Zambia.
Description
Dorsum and lower surface of head black. Ventrals and subcaudals white, broadly margined with black.
The type specimen, a female, is 43 cm (16 7⁄8 in) in total length, which includes a tail 28 mm (1 1⁄8 in) long.
Dorsal scales smooth, without apical pits, arranged in 15 rows. Ventrals 209; anal plate divided; subcaudals 20, also divided.
Diameter of the eye three fifths its distance from the mouth. Rostral higher than wide, barely visible from above. Internasals slightly shorter than the prefrontals. Frontal slightly longer than broad, much broader than the supraoculars, as long as its distance from the rostral, much shorter than the parietals. Nasal entire, in contact with the preocular. Two postoculars. Temporals 1+1. Seven upper labials, third and fourth entering the eye. Four lower labials in contact with the anterior chin shield. First lower labial forming a suture with its fellow behind the mental. Two pairs of chin shields, anterior pair larger than the posterior pair.