Ptyas mucosa (Linnaeus, 1758)

Figueroa, Alex, Low, Martyn E. Y. & Lim, Kelvin K. P., 2023, Singapore’s herpetofauna: updated and annotated checklist, history, conservation, and distribution, Zootaxa 5287 (1), pp. 1-378 : 270

publication ID	https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.5287.1.1
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:78E23714-8973-4755-BC94-0A751D7D2B37
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7968278
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/88502B73-FE97-B97B-FF6B-478F7D630A58
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Ptyas mucosa (Linnaeus, 1758)
status

Treatment

Ptyas mucosa (Linnaeus, 1758) — Erroneous.

Oriental Rat Snake

Singapore records.

Zamenis mucosus — Boulenger, 1893: 386.— Flower, 1896: 882.—Ridley, 1899: 208.— de Rooij, 1917: 98.

Ptyas mucosus — Davison, 1892: 89.—Sworder, 1923: 63.— de Haas, 1950: 547.—F.L.K. Lim & Lee, 1989: 44, 115.—K.K.P. Lim & L.M. Chou, 1990: 54.—K.K.P. Lim & F.L.K. Lim, 1992: 145.— L.M. Chou et al., 1994: 105.— Manthey & Grossmann, 1997: 386.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2008: 169.— Das, 2010: 299.—Wallach et al., 2014: 617.

Ptyas mucosa — Auliya, 2010: 6.—N. Baker & K.P. Lim, 2012: 169.— Das, 2012a: 64.— de Lang, 2017: 191.— Das, 2018: 76.

Remarks. Boulenger (1893) examined a specimen collected in Singapore by Dennys. However, at an earlier date, Blanford (1881) confirmed that the specimen was collected in Hong Kong. For some unknown reason, Boulenger (1893) changed the locality, but since the species is known not to occur in Singapore, we side with Blanford (1881). Tweedie (1953) removed it from the list for Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore; however, P. mucosa was still included in subsequent checklists, although some listed it as doubtful (e.g., Lim & Chou 1990; Baker & Lim 2012). Three specimens at ANSP, CAS, and SMNS have not been referenced before. Specimen ANSP-15627 was probably sent to the Philadelphia Zoo, where Brown worked, or the specimen was sent to Philadelphia Zoo from elsewhere but transited through Singapore. Specimen CAS 8557 is dated 1907 and SMNS 6015 is from 1981. The distribution of P. mucosa covers an expansive distance, which includes Turkmenistan, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, northern Peninsular Malaysia, Sumatra, Java, and Bali (Wallach et al. 2014).

LKCNHM & NHMUK Museum specimens. Singapore (no locality): BMNH 1880.9.10.1 (no date).

Additional Singapore museum specimens. Singapore (no locality): ANSP, CAS, SMNS.

Subfamily Natricinae Bonaparte, 1838 (4 species)

Genus Amphiesma Duméril & Bibron, 1854 (1 species)