Eastern trinket snake

The eastern trinket snake (Elaphe cantoris) is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to South Asia.

Eastern trinket snake
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Colubridae
Genus:	Elaphe
Species:	E. cantoris
Binomial name
Elaphe cantoris (Boulenger, 1894)
Synonyms[2]
Coluber cantoris Boulenger, 1894 Elaphe cantoris — M.A. Smith, 1943 Gonyosoma cantoris — Wallach, 1997 Orthriophis cantoris — Utiger et al., 2002 Elaphe cantoris — Chen et al., 2017

Etymology

The specific name, cantoris, is in honor of Danish zoologist Theodore Edward Cantor.^[3]

Geographic range

E. cantoris is found in the Himalayas in Bhutan, India (Assam, Darjeeling, Sikkim), Myanmar, and Nepal.^[1] The type locality is the Khasi and Garo Hills in Meghalaya.^[2]

Habitat

The preferred natural habitat of E. cantoris is mountain forest at elevations of 1,000–2,300 m (3,300–7,500 ft).^[4]

Description

E. cantoris is a large species, and may grow to a total length (including tail) of almost 2 m (6.6 ft). Dorsally, it has a brownish ground color, which is overlaid by a series of squarish dark brown blotches. Ventrally, it is yellowish anteriorly, becoming pinkish posteriorly.^[4]

Behavior

E. cantoris is partly arboreal.^[2]

Reproduction

E. cantoris is oviparous. In India, sexually mature females lay eggs in late July, with an average clutch size of 10 eggs.^[4]

References

1. Tshewang S, Ghosh A, Wogan G (2021). "Elaphe cantoris ". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021: https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T192117A2042341.en. Accessed on 10 January 2022.
2. Species Elaphe cantoris at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
3. Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Orthriophis cantoris, p. 47).
4. Das I (2002). A Photographic Guide to Snakes and other Reptiles of India. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 144 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Elaphe cantoris, p. 31).

Further reading

• Boulenger GA (1894). Catalogue of the Snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume II., Containing the Conclusion of the Colubridæ Aglyphæ. London: Trustees of the British Museum (Natural History). (Taylor and Francis, printers). xi + 382 pp. + Plates I-XX. (Coluber cantoris, new species, p. 35).
• Chen X, Lemmon AR, Lemmon EM, Pyron RA, Burbrink FT (2017). "Using phylogenomics to understand the link between biogeographic origins and regional diversification in ratsnakes". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 111: 206–218. (Elaphe cantoris).
• Helfenberger, Notker; Shah, Karan B.; Orlov, Nicolai L.; Guex, Gaston-Denis (2000). "Eine seltene Natter aus Nepal, Elaphe cantoris (Boulenger, 1894) (Squamata: Serpentes: Colubridae) ". Sauria 22 (2): 3–10. (in German).
• Smith MA (1943). The Fauna of British India, Ceylon and Burma, Including the Whole of the Indo-Chinese Sub-region. Reptilia and Amphibia. Vol. III.—Serpentes. London: Secretary of State for India. (Taylor and Francis, printers). xii + 583 pp. (Elaphe cantoris, new combination, pp. 152–153).
• Wallach V (1997). "A monograph of the colubrid snakes of the genus Elaphe Fitzinger (book review)". Herpetological Review 28 (2): 110. (Gonyosoma cantoris, new combination).