Simalia Gray, 1849

Szyndlar, Zbigniew & Georgalis, Georgios L., 2023, An illustrated atlas of the vertebral morphology of extant non-caenophidian snakes, with special emphasis on the cloacal and caudal portions of the column, Vertebrate Zoology 73, pp. 717-886 : 717

Simalia Gray, 1849

Material examined.

Simalia amethistina (Schneider, 1801) (QM J51148 ); Simalia boeleni (Brongersma, 1953) (SMF PH 110).

Description (Figs 162-167).

Trunk vertebrae. Centrum much shorter than wide; cotyle and condyle orbicular or moderately (ventrally) depressed; neural arch vaulted or moderately vaulted; posterior median notch of the neural arch deep; neural spine of medium height; prezygapophyseal accessory processes vestigial or very short; hypapophyses disappearing after V 70 ( Simalia boeleni ) or between V 80 and V 90 ( Simalia amethistina ); haemal keel in more posterior vertebrae moderately developed and moderately broad; paracotylar foramina absent.

Trunk / caudal transition. A hypapophysis, that appears in the last trunk vertebra, diminishes gradually in size in more posterior vertebrae; in the last cloacal vertebra(e) or first caudal vertebra it can be considered a haemal keel, with flattened (slightly grooved in Simalia amethistina and Simalia boeleni ) posterior end. Haemapophyses (unpaired unilateral in S. amethistina ) first appear on the second caudal vertebra (Fig. 167 ).

Number of vertebrae. Simalia amethistina (QM J51148): 416 (355+4+57, including a final fusion); Simalia boeleni (SMF PH 110): 378 (305+5+68).

Data from literature: Simalia amethistina : 323 trunk vertebrae plus 106 cloacal and caudal vertebrae ( Nopcsa 1923); Simalia amethistina : 318-322 ± 5 trunk and cloacal vertebrae plus 118-119 ± 1 caudal vertebrae ( Alexander and Gans 1966); Simalia amethistina : 322 trunk vertebrae plus 10 cloacal vertebrae (apparently erroneous) plus 92 caudal vertebrae ( Rochebrune 1881); Simalia boeleni : 360-363 vertebrae in total ( Parmley and Reed 2003).

Figures

Figure 167. Pythonidae: Simalia amethistina (QM J 51148), caudal vertebrae.