Typhlops perimychus, Thomas, Richard & Hedges, Blair, 2007

Thomas, Richard & Hedges, Blair, 2007, Eleven new species of snakes of the genus Typhlops (Serpentes: Typhlopidae) from Hispaniola and Cuba, Zootaxa 1400, pp. 1-26 : 15-19

Typhlops perimychus new species ( Figs. 8 E, 9A)

Holotype: USNM 564800 (field tag number 161982), from Blue Beach, U. S. Naval Base Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, five meters elevation, collected on 22 March 1987 by S. B. Hedges and C. A. Hass.

Paratypes: All from the U. S. Naval Base Guantanamo Bay, Cuba: KU 268435, windward (east) side of Bay, Kittery Beach, 8 Nov. 1968, P. J. Tolson; KU 268655–656, windward side of Bay, 5 April 1969, J. A. Rodgers, A. Schwartz; USNM 192797, nursery, east side of Bay, 9 May 1969, P. J. Tolson; USNM 192802, nursery, east side of Bay, 21 May 1969, P. J. Tolson; USNM 192811, nursery, east side of Bay, 10 July 1969, P. J. Tolson; KU 268657, windward nursery, 1969, P. J. Tolson; KU 269658, windward nursery, 11 Sept. 1969, P. J. Tolson; KU 269659, windward nursery, 6 April 1969, P. J. Tolson; KU 269660, windward nursery, 2 May 1969, P. J. Tolson; KU 269661, windward nursery, 5 May 1969, A. Schwartz; MCZ 68726; MCZ 68944; MCZ 69443; USNM 315999, near grounds of Fil­Am Club, just N Glass Beach; USNM 316000, John Paul Jones Hill on Perimeter Road, 16 August 1988, R. I. Crombie, L. K. Gordon, G. Zustak.

Associated specimen: USNM 317824, Kittery Beach Road, just past Graffiti Hill, R. I Crombie and G. K. Pregill, 9 June 1987.

Diagnosis: A moderately large species of the Typhlops biminiensis Group differing from T. biminiensis in having a rostral with an acuminate posterior edge, not broadly rounded. Also, the rostral has parallel sides and is not indented at the apex of the snout ( Fig. 8 ). Typhlops perimychus additionally differs from T. biminiensis in having a more protuberant snout (NE) and a larger preocular apical diameter (PD), as noted above ( Figs. 10 A–10C). Diagnostic characters distinguishing this species from the other Cuban species will be discussed below as those species are described. Diagnostic characters distinguishing all Cuban species are presented in Table 2 .

Species1

Character A B C D E F G H Rostral acuminate posteriorly No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 1—A, Typhlops biminiensis ; B, T. perimychus ; C, T. arator ; D, T. anousius ; E, T. notorachius ; F, T. contorhinus ; G, T. anchaurus ; H, T. satelles .

Description: Snout rounded, slightly lobed (truncate­ogival). Rostral varying from broad and rounded, almost circular, to broadly oval in dorsal aspect (RW1/RL1 0.8–1.0); not flared on apex; minimal umbo; no labial flare. Anterior nasal width as a proportion of RW1 0.34–0.39. Preocular angle 104–131°, apex rounded; lower portion contacting labials 2 and 3 of upper labial series. OL 1/2 height, OS 0.14–0.25. Rostronasal pattern strongly divergent. Postocular 4–7 times higher than long. First parietal standard, spanning two scale rows or slightly less. Second parietal present and similar in size to the first or absent (= standard scale). TL to 280 mm (see below). TL/TA 46–85. TL/MBD 41–69. Middorsal scales 453–496. Scale rows 22 with no posterior reduction or 24 reducing to 22 at about midbody. Coloration bicolor (medium to dark brown dorsally) with the transition to an unpigmented venter by both fading and dropping out of pigmented scales anteriorly, with less fading posteriorly, resulting in a jagged transition due to dropping out of pigment posteriorly. Hemipenes attenuate.

Distribution: Known only from the eastern (“windward”) side of the U. S. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay in eastern Cuba ( Fig. 11 ).

Etymology: From the Greek, peri (around, near) and mychos (bay) in allusion to the distribution of the species, next to Guantánamo Bay.

Comments: This is the best represented species of the T. biminiensis Group in Cuba. It is unclear why it appears to be so abundant on the U.S. Naval Station while species in this group have been rarely collected elsewhere in Cuba, despite considerable searching. However, most specimens from the base have been collected at the nursery, next to the golf course, where there is abundant moisture and vegetation. We suspect that this artificial habitat has allowed this species to increase locally in numbers. On the other hand, the series of 18 specimens has accumulated over a period of decades from collections made by many persons, and therefore the combined search effort has been great. A single specimen collected at a different location on the base, USNM 317824 (407 mm TL), is the second largest specimen of the genus in the West Indies (see below). It is 45% larger than the next largest specimen (280 mm) of T. perimychus . No tissues are available from this specimen. Although in rostral shape it agrees with other material of T. perimychus , the large size difference makes comparisons of measurements difficult and the possibility exists that it is an undescribed species. For these reasons we have treated it here as an associated specimen.

The next new species having affinities with T. biminiensis occurs in western Cuba. It may be known as

Figures

FIGURE 8. Head scalation in the Typhlops biminiensis Group, including seven new species from Cuba. (A) T. biminiensis (ASFS V 11655), from Elbow Cay, Cay Sal Bank, Bahamas. (B) T. paradoxus (ASFS V 12067), from Great Inagua, Bahamas. (C) T. epactius (ASFS V 11673), from Cayman Brac, Cayman Islands. (D) T. caymanensis (ASFS V 17112), from Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands. (E) T. perimychus (USNM 564800), holotype, from Guantanamo Bay Naval Station, Cuba. (F) T. arator (MNHNCu 191), holotype, from El Narigon, La Habana, Province, Cuba). (G) T. anousius (MNHNCu 4550), holotype, from 3.5 km E Tortuguilla, Guantánamo Province, Cuba. (H) T. notorachius (MNHNCu 4551), holotype, from 9.4 km W Imias, Guantánamo Province, Cuba. (I) T. contorhinus (MNHNCu 4552), holotype, from 4.9 km S La Tinta, Guantánamo Province, Cuba. (J) T. anchaurus (MNHNCu 4553), holotype, from within 1 km of Cueva de Agua (2.5 km airline NW Maisí), Guantánamo Province, Cuba. (K) T. satelles (SMF 61303), holotype, from Rancho Luna, about 12 km airline S Cienfuegos, Cienfuegos Province, Cuba.

FIGURE 10. Variation in measurements of Typhlops biminiensis and Cuban species of the Typhlops biminiensis Group. For all graphs (A – F), the following species are indicated by symbols: T. anchaurus (open diamond), T. anousius (closed square), T. arator (closed diamond), T. biminiensis (open circle), T. contorhinus (open triangle), T. notorachius (closed triangle), T. paradoxus (open square), T. perimychus (closed circle), T. satelles (“ X ”). Trendlines are indicated on some graphs for T. biminiensis and T. perimychus. See text for definition of abbreviations.

FIGURE 11. Geographic distribution of seven species of blindsnakes (Typhlops) in Cuba. Closed triangles = T. perimychus, closed hexagons = T. arator, open circle = T. anousius, closed circle = T. notorachius, open square = T. contorhinus, open triangle = T. anchaurus, closed square = T. satelles.

Tables

TABLE 2. A summary of variation in selected characters of Typhlops biminiensis and associated species of Cuban blindsnakes.

Rostral umbo	No No Yes No No	Yes	Yes	No
Rostral flared on apex	No No Yes No No	No	Yes	No
Pigmentation present	Yes Yes Yes No Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Middorsal scales	454–537 453–496 578–579 465–513 475–529	502	514	514–527
Scale rows anterior	22,24 22,24 26 24 24	24	24	22,24
Scale rows posterior	22,24 22 24 22 22	22	22	22
Scale reduction (% TL)	50 50 34–41 2 15–40	31	31	11
ANTNAS/RW1	0.30–0.37 0.34–0.39 0.35 0.40–0.64 0.42–0.53	0.49	0.36	0.32–0.33
SVL (mm)	221–373 128–273 235­450 107–193 277–297	310	235	302–343
TL (mm)	225–380 130–280 240–460 109–197 282–301	316	240	307–350
TA (mm)	2–6 2–6 5–10 2–4 4–5	6	5	5–7
TL/TA	42–60 46–85 46–48 55–56 48–75	53	48	55–61
TL/MBD	39–51 41–59 51–55 45–55 45–57	63	63	62–75
PD	2–20 13–29 21 13–20 21–30	40	18	24–30
RI/RL1	0.19–0.33 0.19–0.49 0.25 0.40–0.41 0.37–0.43	0.68	0.35	0.23–0.27
RW1/RL1	0.81–1.08 0.79–1.05 0.97 0.74–0.77 0.78–0.87	1.03	0.87	0.99
RW2/RW1	0.75–0.94 0.76–1.05 1.04 0.83–0.94 0.91–0.99	0.96	0.92	0.79–0.83
((RW1+RL3)/TL)*100	1.88–2.50 1.80–2.96 2.46 2.11–2.75 1.60–1.80	1.67	2.10	1.58–1.91
Sample size	17 20 3 2 4	1	1	2