Mixcoatlus barbouri

Mixcoatlus barbouri is a pit viper species endemic to Mexico. No subspecies are currently recognized.^[3]

Mixcoatlus barbouri
Conservation status
Endangered  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Viperidae
Genus:	Mixcoatlus
Species:	M. barbouri
Binomial name
Mixcoatlus barbouri (Dunn, 1919)
Synonyms
Lachesis barbouri Dunn, 1919 Bothrops barbouri — Amaral, 1930 Trimeresurus barbouri — H.M. Smith, 1941 Porthidium barbouri — Campbell, 1988 Cerrophidion barbouri — Campbell & Lamar, 1992[2] Mixcoatlus barbouri — Jadin et al., 2011[3][4]

Common names: Barbour's montane pit viper,^[5] Barbour's pit viper^[6]

Etymology

The specific name, barbouri, is in honor of American herpetologist Thomas Barbour.^[7]

Description

Adults of M. barbouri generally grow to 30–40 cm (11¾-15¾ inches) in total length (including tail), with a maximum recorded total length of 51.0 cm (20 in). The species is terrestrial and moderately stout.^[5]

The color pattern consists of a blackish ground color, overlaid with a vague dorsal zig-zag stripe that extends down the flanks, which looks like a series of triangular markings. The skin between the scales is rust-colored, as are the sides of the head.^[6]

Geographic range

Mixcoatlus barbouri is found in the highlands of the Sierra Madre del Sur in the state of Guerrero, Mexico.

The type locality given is "Omilteme [or Omiltemi], Guerrero, Mexico".^[2]

Habitat

The preferred habitats of M. barbouri are mountain areas at some 9,000 feet (2,740 m) elevation in rocky pine forests and clearings with bunch grass.^[6]

Conservation status

The species M. barbouri is classified as Endangered (EN) on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species with the following criteria: B1ab(iii) (v3.1, 2001).^[1] A species is listed as such when the best available evidence indicates that the geographic range, in the form of extent of occurrence, is estimated to be less than 5,000 km² (1,930 mi²), estimates indicate the population is severely fragmented or known to exist at no more than five locations, and a continuing decline has been observed, inferred or projected in the area, extent and/or quality of habitat. It is therefore considered to be facing a very high risk of extinction in the wild. The population trend is down. Year assessed: 2007.^[8]

References

1. Canseco-Márquez, L.; Campbell, J.A.; Ponce-Campos, P.; Muñoz-Alonso, A.; García Aguayo, A. (2007). "Mixcoatlus barbouri". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2007: e.T64305A12761692. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2007.RLTS.T64305A12761692.en. Retrieved 20 November 2021.
2. McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré T (1999). Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, Volume 1. Washington, District of Columbia: Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN 1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN 1-893777-01-4 (volume).
3. Mixcoatlus barbouri at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 13 December 2014.
4. Jadin RC, Smith EN [in French], Campbell JA (2011). "Unraveling a tangle of Mexican serpents: a systematic revision of highland pitvipers". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 163 (3): 949–951. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2011.00748.x.
5. Campbell JA, Lamar WW (2004). The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere. 2 volumes. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publishing Associates. 870 pp., 1,500 plates. ISBN 0-8014-4141-2.
6. Mehrtens JM (1987). Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. ISBN 0-8069-6460-X.
7. Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Cerrophidion barbouri, p. 16).
8. 2001 Categories & Criteria (version 3.1) at the IUCN Red List. Accessed 14 September 2007.

Further reading

• Dunn ER (1919). "Two New Crotaline Snakes from Western Mexico". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington 32: 213-216. (Lachesis barbouri, new species, pp. 213–214).