Helicops gomesi, also known commonly as the São Paulo keelback and cobra d'água in Brazilian Portuguese, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to Brazil.

Helicops gomesi
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Colubridae
Genus: Helicops
Species:
H. gomesi
Binomial name
Helicops gomesi
Amaral, 1922

Etymology

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The specific name, gomesi, is in honor of Brazilian herpetologist João Florêncio Gomes.[2]

Geographic range

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H. gomesi is found in the Brazilian states of Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Paraná, and São Paulo.[1][3]

Habitat

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The preferred natural habitats of H. gomesi are forest and savanna.[1]

Description

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H. gomesi may attain a snout-to-vent length (SVL) of 76 cm (30 in).[1] Both dorsally and ventrally, it is brown, with some darker markings. Its dorsal scales are arranged in 19 rows throughout the length of its body.[3]

Diet

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H. gomesi preys upon fishes and amphibians.[1]

Reproduction

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H. gomes is oviparous. Clutch size is 7–22 eggs.[1]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f Silveira, A.L.; Prudente, A.L. da C.; Argôlo, A.J.S.; Abrahão, C.R.; Nogueira, C. de C.; Strüssmann, C.; Loebmann, D.; Barbo, F.E.; Franco, F.L.; Costa, G.C.; de Moura, G.J.B.; Zaher, H. el D.; Borges-Martins, M.; Martins, M.R.C.; Oliveira, M.E.; Hoogmoed, M.S.; Marques, O.A.V.; Passos, P.G.H.; Bérnils, R.S.; Kawashita-Ribeiro, R.A.; Sawaya, R.J.; da Costa, T.B.G. (2019). "Helicops gomesi ". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2019: e.T15178654A123740260. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  2. ^ 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. (Helicops gomesi, p. 103).
  3. ^ a b Species Helicops gomesi at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.

Further reading

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  • Amaral A (1922). "Contribuição para o conhecimento dos Ofidios do Brazil. Parte I. Quatro noves espécies de serpentes brasileiras [= Contribution to the knowledge of the Ophidians of Brazil. Part I. Four new species of Brazilian serpents]". Anexos das Memórias do Instituto Butantan, Secção de Ofiologia 1 (1): 1–37. (Helicops gomesi, new species. p. 7). (in Portuguese).
  • Freiberg M (1982). Snakes of South America. Hong Kong: T.F.H. Publications. 189 pp. ISBN 0-87666-912-7. (Helicops gomesi, p. 99).
  • Zaher H, Barbo FE, Sanchez Martinez P, Nogueira C, Rodrigues MT, Sawaya RJ (2011). "Répteis do Estado de São Paulo: conhecimento atual e perspectivas [= Reptiles from São Paulo State: current knowledge and perspectives]". Biota Neotropica 11 (1): 1–15. (in Portuguese, with an abstract in English).