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Pygmy mulga snake

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Pygmy mulga snake
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Elapidae
Genus: Pseudechis
Species:
P. weigeli
Binomial name
Pseudechis weigeli
(Wells & Wellington, 1987)
Synonyms[2]
  • Cannia weigeli
    Wells & Wellington, 1987
  • Pseudechis weigeli
    Wüster et al., 2004

The pygmy mulga snake (Pseudechis weigeli), also commonly known as the pygmy king brown snake,[3] is a species of venomous snake in the black snake genus Pseudechis in the family Elapidae. The species is native to Australia.

Geographic range

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In Australia, P. weigeli is endemic to the Kimberley ranges.[2]

Habitat

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The preferred natural habitats of P. weigeli are forest and savanna.[1]

Reproduction

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P. weigeli is ovoviviparous.[2]

Taxonomy

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P. weigeli was genetically confirmed as a distinct species in 2017.[4] Within the genus Pseudechis it is most closely related to the eastern dwarf mulga snake (P. pailsei) and an as yet undescribed species from the Northern Territory.[4]

Etymology

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The specific name, weigeli, is in honor of Australian herpetologist John Randall Weigel (born 1955).[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b Ellis, R.; Shea, G.; Teale, R.; Cogger, H.; Zichy-Woinarski, J. (2017). "Pseudechis weigeli". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2017: e.T42493301A42493307. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T42493301A42493307.en. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  2. ^ a b c Species Pseudechis weigeli at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
  3. ^ a b 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. (Pseudechis weigeli, p. 281).
  4. ^ a b Maddock ST, Childerstone A, Fry BG, Williams DJ, Barlow A, Wüster W (2017). "Multi-locus phylogeny and species delimitation of Australo-Papuan blacksnakes (Pseudechis Wagler, 1830: Elapidae: Serpentes)" (PDF). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 107: 48–55. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2016.09.005. PMID 27637992. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-12-20.

Further reading

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  • Cogger HG (2014). Reptiles and Amphibians of Australia, Seventh Edition. Clayton, Victoria, Australia: CSIRO Publishing. xxx + 1,033 pp. ISBN 978-0643100350.
  • Wells RW, Wellington CR (1987). "A new species of proteroglyphous snake (Serpentes: Oxyuranidae) from Australia". Australian Herpetologist (503): 1-8. (Cannia weigeli, new species).
  • Wilson S, Swan G (2013). A Complete Guide to Reptiles of Australia, Fourth Edition. Sydney: New Holland Publishers. 522 pp. ISBN 978-1921517280.
  • Wüster W, Dumbrell AJ, Hay C, Pook CE, Williams DJ, Fry BG (2004). "Snakes across the Strait: trans-Torresian phylogeographic relationships in three genera of Australasian snakes (Serpentes: Elapidae: Acanthophis, Oxyuranus, and Pseudechis)". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 34 (1): 1–14. (Pseudechis weigeli, new combination).