Casarea Gray, 1842

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

Casarea Gray, 1842

Material examined.

Casarea dussumieri (Schlegel, 1837) (MNHN-AC-1993.3382; NHMUK 1992.996; UMMZ 190732).

Description (Figs 58-62).

Trunk vertebrae. Centrum as short as wide or somewhat longer; cotyle and condyle orbicular; neural arch moderately vaulted; posterior median notch of the neural arch deep; neural spine as high as long or slightly lower; prezygapophyseal accessory processes vestigial or very short; hypapophyses present throughout the trunk portion of the column, spine-like (more anterior vertebrae) to sigmoidal (more posterior vertebrae); paracotylar foramina present (occasionally even doubled from one side; see e.g., V 40 in Fig. 58 ).

Trunk / caudal transition. The last trunk vertebrae are provided with a prominent hypapophysis, relatively larger and thicker than those on the more anterior vertebrae. The hypapophysis is retained on the cloacal vertebrae, but becomes smaller. Paired haemapophyses appear on the first caudal vertebra.

Number of vertebrae. Casarea dussumieri (MNHN-AC-1993.3382): 341 (228+3+110). Counts for the same specimen were previously published by Hoffstetter (1960).

Data from literature (all for Casarea dussumieri ): 225 trunk and cloacal vertebrae (a few anterior vertebrae missing) plus 126 caudal vertebrae ( Alexander and Gans 1966); 228 trunk vertebrae plus 113 cloacal and caudal vertebrae ( McDowell 1975).

Figures

Figure 58. Bolyeriidae: Casarea dussumieri (MNHN-AC- 1993.3382), trunk vertebrae.