Mussurana bicolor Peracca, 1904

De Alencar, Arília Aiarsa Laura R. V. & Martins, Marcio, 2013, Natural History Of Pseudoboine Snakes, Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia 53 (19), pp. 261-283 : 265

Mussurana bicolor Peracca, 1904

Distribution: Mussurana bicolor is known for southwestern Brazil, Paraguay and northern of Argentina ( Scrocchi & Vinas, 1990; Strüssmann, 1992; Yanosky et al., 1996; Zaher, 1996; Giraudo & Scrocchi, 2002; Scott Jr. et al., 2006).

Habitat and time of activity: Mussurana bicolor is a moderate-sized pseudoboine (maximum SVL = 825 mm, female; Giraudo, 2001). The little information concerning the habitat of M. bicolor indicates that it inhabits primarily open areas like those from the Pantanal biome, and can also be found in disturbed areas ( Strüssmann, 1992; Couturier & Faivovich, 1996; M. Martins, unpublished data). Couturier & Faivovich (1996) found three individuals active on the ground, indicating that this may be a terrestrial species. One individual was constricting a frog on a dry grassy substrate of a swamp at night (M. Martins, unpublished data). The five available records indicate that M. bicolor is a nocturnal species ( Strüssmann, 1992; Couturier & Faivovich, 1996).

Feeding: The scarce information about its feeding habits suggests that M. bicolor is one of the few pseudoboine that feeds on amphibians (N = 3, Leptodactylus chaquensis , Leptodactylus sp. ; Strüssmann, 1992; Yanosky et al., 1996; M. Martins, unpublished data). It can also feed on small mammals (N = 1), lizards (N = 1), and snakes (N = 1 Colubridae ) ( Strüssmann, 1992; this study).

Reproduction: Clutch size varies from seven to 15 eggs (N = 8, mean = 9 eggs; Strüssmann, 1992; this study). The smallest mature female was 601 + 126 mm SVL (this study), and the smallest mature male was 550 mm SVL ( Zaher, 1996). There is no difference in SVL between sexes (Scott Jr. et al., 2006).