Asiatic Herpetological Research

1997

Vol. 7, pp. 166-169

A New Species of Rhabdophis (Serpentes: Colubridae) from Hainan Island,China
Er-mi Zhao

Chengdu Institute of Biology, Accidentia Sinica, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041 China,Abstract.- After detailed examination of a population of colubrine snakes previously identified as Natrix (sensulato) chrysarga (Schlegel), from Hainan Island. China, it is now considered an undescribed species. This paper
describes this new species and names it as Rhabdophis adleri.

Key words: Serpentes, Colubridae, Rhabdophis adleri sp. nov., China.

Figure 1 Allotype of Rhabdophis adleri.
.

Introduction
G. A. Boulenger ("1899." 1900) reported Tropidono-from Wuchih Mts. (= Mt.
M. A. Smith (1923) reported onetus chrysargus Schlegel

Wuzhi). Hainan.

specimen of Natrix chrysarga (Schlegel) from Kaphao (near Mt. Wuzhi). Hainan Island, which had 154
ventrals and 83 pairs of subcaudals. 8 supralabials.

4th and 5th touching the eyes.

C. H. Pope (1935)

reported two specimens from Hainan and two fromHong Kong as Natrix chrysarga (Schlegel). His
description is abstracted from De Rooij (1917:89). but

he noted that "Hainan examples seem to lack the dark
spots usually present laterallycit..

p.

102).

R.

on the ventrals" (loc.

Bourret (1934) described Natrix

chrysarga callichroma from Ba-vi. Tong King, Vietnam. M. A. Smith 1938) described Natrix auchenia(based on specimens from Five Finger Mountain (Mt.

Wuzhi). Hainan Island. M. A. Smith (1943) indicatedunder Natrix chrysarga that "the Himalayan andHainan records of this snake are not correct," and considered his Natrix auchenia to be a synonym of Natrix

callichroma fiourret. 1934.

Thus, the Hainan speci-mens were referred to the latter. Recently. M. Toriba(1994), following M. A. Smith, also stated that theHainan records of Rhabdophis chrysargus "should beZ. X. Li (1962)
replaced by R. callichromus."recorded Natrix himalayanus as new to Hainan Island.

have examined one of his specimens (FDUA162).
and actually it belongs to the new species described inI

this paper.

A herpetological survey was carried out on

Hainan Island in 1964 by a combined team of Sichuan
Medical College (now West China University of MedicalSciences) and Southwest Institute of Biology(now Chengdu Institute of Biology). Academia Sinica.
Nine specimens of Natrix (sensu lato) were1W7

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caught that are referable to theIalsosame species

to theexamined specimens belonging
from Hainan Island collected by Institute of Zoology.
Academia Sinica. All the specimens examined by mewereinoriginally identified as Natrix chrysarga (asB. Q.

Hu et al., 1980:67) or Rhabdophis chrysargus(asin

After detailed

Zhao and Adler, 1993:256).

examination,

1997

Asiatic Herpetological ResearchVol. 7. p. 168I

now believe that it should be a new
described before.

species which has never been

the outergroove, all the dorsal scales strongly keeled,most ones slightly keeled: ventrals 151: anal divided;

subcaudals in 82 pairs.
Total length 790 mm, tail length 195 mm, tail 0.25

of the total length.
Olive green above, with short yellow transversebars on D 5 and D 6 at an interval of 1.5-2.5 scales, thedorso-lateral yellow transverse bars 59 pairs on bodyand 15 pairs on tail. Lower parts light yellow. Top ofhead olive green, a reverse "V" -shaped mark in light

Rhabdophis adleri sp. nov.
"1899" (1900):
Tropidonotus chrysargus: Boulenger.
957.

color upon the nape, upper lip light yellow with partial sutures grayish brown;

ventral surface of head yel-lowish white.

Natrix chrysarga:

Smith. 1923:

101 (part): Hu et al..

1980: 67.

201: Pope. 1935:

The hemipenis is forked at 9th subcaudal plate andextends to the 13th subcaudal plate, bi-lobed type.

Natrix himalayanus: Li, 1962: 432.

isRhabdophis chrysargus: Zhao and Adler. 1993:256.

spine or hook.

Holotype: CIB 64III5917. adult male. 10 June 1964.
Dali Village in Mt. Diaoluo, Lingshui Co.. Hainan
Prov.. China. 225 meters.

spinousItthroughout and has a single very large basal

The spines are small and relatively
uniform in size but more dense on the tip of the organ
and become larger on the base. The skin of the baseforms cup-like depressions. The sulcus spermaticus isof theCIB 64III5228, adult female, 10 May
Allotype:
1964. Mt. Wuzhi. Qiongzhong Co., Hainan Prov..
China, 500 meters (Fig. 1 ).

CIB 64III5112. 5114-5. females, 24-25
64III5245. male,CIB
May 1964, Mt.
April 1964,
Paratypes:

1organprominent and forked at the forked pointand(Zhang et al., 1984. based on holotype64II15883).

Variation of Allotype: The allotype (Fig. 1), an adultfemale.

1Wuzhi. Qiongzhong Co., Hainan Prov.. China, 500-610 meters; CIB 64III5883. male. CIB 64III5441.
Co..
juvenile. 1-9 June 1964. Mt. Diaoluo. Lingshui

Hainan Prov., China. 82-217 meters: CIB 64III6612.
juvenile. 25 August 1964, Mt. Yinggeling,Hainan Prov., China. 670 meters.

Baisha Co.,

right;

1

preocular, 3 postoculars on

left

and 4 onventrals 154; subcaudals in 83 pairs; yellow

transverse bars 56+26 pairs: total length 927 mm, tail240 mm, tail 0.26 of the total length.
twoI examined, excepting the type series,
DiaMt.
fromoneandfourfemales,males,juvenile
Variation:oluo, one male and five females from Mt. Jianfen-All the type series, but one (CIB 64III5245) which

was presented to Fujian Medical College, are preserved in Chengdu Institute of Biology, Academia

gling,Luodong

Co..

HainanIsland,and anotherfemale from Hainan Island, totally six males, fourteen
females, and one juvenile (see Table 1). The variationisas follows:

2 preoculars (rarely 1 ). 3 postoculars ( 1Sinica.

to 4); 2 anterior temporals (rarely 1). 2 posterior tem-

A Rhabdophis with a nuchal groove andtwo maxillary teeth abruptly enlarged, but
without a nuchal gland. Upper labials 8. the third tofifth (rarely fourth and fifth) touching the eye: 19 dor-

3rd to 5th touchingporals (rarely 3); 8 supralabials,
the eye, only two females from Mt. Jianfengling with
4th and 5th touching the eye; 10 infralabials, 5 inrows at midbody, all strongly keeled; olivetrans-153(n=6) 150-155 (mean 152.2). in females (n=14)
164 (mean 156): anal divided: subcaudals in males(n=5) 82-88 (mean 84.4). in females (n=9) 76-87

Preocular 2, postocular 3;(mean 81.3). The yellow transverse bars are 39-69 +Diagnosis:
the lastsal scale

green above with short dorso-lateral, yellowish
verse bars 39-69 +3-32 pairs.

Description of Holotype:anterior temporal 2. posterior temporal

2: supralabial

8, the third to fifth touching the eye; infralabials 10,
the first pair in contact with each other behind themental, first five pairs in contact with the anterior

chin-shields.

Dorsal scales in 19 rows at neck andonly

contact with anterior chin-shield.

Ventrals in males

3-32 pairs.
All the specimens examined have a nuchal groove.
All specimens in the type series were dissected and noor non-saccutype of nuchal gland either sacculated
lated or naked area of skin could be found.

midbody. 17 rows before vent, the anterior dozen
scales just behind parietals of two median rows small

Comparisons: This new species differs from Natrix

and arranged in parallel rows in formation of a nuchal

Smith, 1938 and in the latter "the scales of the neckcallichroma

Bourret.

1934andNatrix

aucheniaare not altered in shape or size, but on stretching thetwo parallel longitudinal areas ofnaked skin are exposed." and "beneath the naked areas
skin of that part,

gland (sacculated type); the coloration is"grayish-olive above, with indistinct narrow black,lies

Vol. 7. p. 169

Asiatic Herpetological Research

1997

thetransverse bars, intersected on the dorso-lateral line

Literature Cited
Boulenger, G. A. "1899" 1900). On the reptiles,
batrachians and fishes collected by the late Mr. John(Whithead in the interior of Hainan.

Proceedings ofthe Zoological Society of London 1899:956-962.

Notes

R.

1934.

l'lndochine

francaiseherpetologiques surGeneral deby short whitish bars" (M. A. Smith. 1943:309). The
scales of the neck of the new form are altered in shape

Bourret,and size in formation of a nuchal groove, but lack alTnstruction Publique, Hanoi 1934(8): 149-157.

Hu. B. Q.. M. H. Huang, Z. T. Xie, E. M. Zhao, Y. M.

BulletinII.

becausenuchal gland; and the coloration is much different
black transverse bars intersected on theJiang, Q.

dorso-lateral line by short, whitish bars is never found[Atlas(as in auchenia). This new species differs from Tropi-

House of Science and Technology, Shanghai:(3), 5, 3,donotus chrysargos Schlegel. 1937 by the latter hav-166 pp. (In Chinese).

ing "I preocular;...9 supralabials. 3rd to 5th touching
the eye; usually six infralabials touching the anteriorgenials."and "hemipenistothe8th caudal

plate,

forked near the tip" (loc. cit.. p. 308). This new formhas 2 (vary rarely 1 ) preoculars; 8 supralabials. 3rd to
5th touching the eye; only five infralabials touching
the anterior chin-shield; and hemipenis to the 13thLi, Z.

Y Huang, Y Zong, andof Chinese Snakes].

X.

J.

F.

Ma.

1980.

Shanghai Publishing[A new record of snake to ChinaActa Zoologica Sin-1958.

Natri.x himalayanus (Giinther)].
ica, Beijing

14(3):432. (In Chinese).

Pope, C. H.

The Reptiles of China. Natural1935.

history of central Asia X. American Museum of Natural History,

New York. 604 pp.
The reptiles of the Indo-Austra-subcaudal plate and forked at 8th subcaudal plate.
This new species differs also from TropidonotusRooij, N. De.

himalayanus Giinther. 1864 by the latter having "1
preocular; 8 supralabials. 4th and 5th touching theLeiden. 334 pp.

eye" and "hemipenis extending to the 7th caudal
plate, not forked" (loc. cit., p. 300), and the coloration

batrachians from the island of Hainan. Journal of theis different.

Smith. M. A.

Data:

distributedover entire

WidelyBiologicalisland at an altitude from 82 to 670 meters.
foundin the plains, hills,

Itand low mountains.

wasItis1917.

lian Archipelago,

Smith, M. A.

volume2.

Ophidia.

E.

J.

Brill,On a collection of reptiles and1923.

Natural History Society of Siam 6:195-212.
1938.

The nucho-dorsal glands ofProceedings of the Zoological Society ofLondon 1938:575-583.
snakes.

Smith, M. A.

1943.

The Fauna of British India, Cey-often found on the ridges between rice fields, amonglon and Burma, including the whole of the Indo-Chi-grass along small paths in hilly regions, and also isfound at the border of forests. Our specimens werenese sub-region.

collected during the end of April and the middle ofJune. Most of them were collected around ten o'clockToriba.

in the morning on fine days.
It feeds on small frogs
and fishes. No dates are available on its reproduction.

Etymology:Itake great pleasure in naming this newKraig Adler of Cornell University in
Ithaca, New York. USA. in honor of his devotion tospecies for Prof.

the study of Chinese amphibians and reptiles.

He col-Reptilia and Amphibia, vol.
andFrancis, London. 583 pp.
Serpentes. Taylor

III-M. 1994. Book reviews: Herpetology ofChina. The Snake, Yabuzuka 26( 1 ):82-85.
Zhang. F. J.. S. Q. Hu. and E. M. Zhao. 1984. [Comparative studies and phylogenetic discussions on
hemipenial morphology of the Chinese Colubrinae(Colubridae)]. Acta Herpetologica Sinica, new series
3(3):23-44. (In Chinese).

laborated with me to prepare the book entitled "Her-Zhao, E. M. And K. Adler.

petology of China."

China. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles, Oxford, Ohio, in cooperation with Chinese SocietyfortheStudy

Chengdu. 522 pp.

1993.

of Amphibians

Herpetology ofandReptiles.