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Family : COLUBRIDAE
Species: Dendrelaphis lineolatus
Maximum Size : Around 1.5 metres ?
Dendrelaphis lineolatus
is a distinctively coloured species of bronzeback or tree snake from New
Guinea and adjacent islands.
The top of its head and
its entire tail are black, and in sharp contrast to the underside of the
head and belly which are pure white. The middle part of the body is black to
brownish black, typically with oblique dark bars. There are black spots on
the underside and dark blotches at the edge of the ventral scales. As with
all species of Dendrelaphis, its body is slender, its head is small
and its eyes are large with a round pupil.
The snake pictured here was found on the island of Waigeo, Raja Ampat, West
Papua Province, eastern Indonesia : the island lies around 50 km off the
northwest coast of New Guinea. It was found early in the morning on a
hillside slope in lowland primary rainforest, at an elevation of around 150
metres.
Dendrelaphis lineolatus occurs on the main island of New Guinea, as
well as the neighbouring islands of Misool, Salawati and Yapen (van Rooijen
at al, 2015). Based on this image, it also occurs on the island of Waigeo.
Fig 1 : A striking image of this species in a typically alert
Dendrelaphis-style posture, actively hunting but ready to flee.
Photo thanks to Simon Day.
References :
van Rooijen, J., Vogel, G. & Somaweera, R. (2015). A revised taxonomy of the
Australo-Papuan species of the colubrid genus Dendrelaphis
(Serpentes: Colubridae). Salamandra, 51(1): 33-56.
Thanks to Gernot Vogel for
assistance.
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