Ovophis jenkinsi

Ovophis jenkinsi
	Holotype individual in life
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Viperidae
Genus:	Ovophis
Species:	O. jenkinsi
Binomial name
	Ovophis jenkinsi; Qiu, Wang, Xia, Jiang, Zeng, Wang, Li & Shi, 2024

Ovophis jenkinsi, commonly known as the Jenkins' mountain pit viper, is a pit viper species found in Yunnan, China.

Taxonomy

The species Ovophis jenkinsi was first described in a 2024 study based on five individuals collected by Zhong-Wen Jiang and Xian-Chun Qiu in 2018 and 2023, all originating from Tongbiguan Township, Yingjiang County in Yunnan, China. An adult male (IOZ 002679) deposited in the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences was designated as the holotype of the species, while the remaining four specimens (consisting of two adult females and two juveniles) were designated as paratypes. The specific name jenkinsi honors herpetologist Robert William Garfield Jenkins, who aided snake conservation and management projects in China, and the common name "Jenkins' mountain pitviper" has been proposed based on this.^[1]

A molecular phylogenetic analysis conducted by Qiu and colleagues (2024) found that within the Ovophis genus, O. jenkinsi is the closest known relative of O. monticola, and that the two species are clustered with O. convictus. The results of the analysis are displayed in the cladogram below:^[1]

Vipera berus (Outgroup)

Ovophis

Ovophis tonkinensis

	GP 1665

	KIZ 011602

Ovophis makazayazaya

YPX 53011

	GP 21

	KIZ 02143

Ovophis zayuensis

	GP 713

	GP 1505

Ovophis malhotrae

ROM 39381

	GP 2041

	GP 2053

Ovophis convictus

AM B628

	AM B580

	AM B629

Ovophis jenkinsi

	IOZ 002679

	IOZ 002680

Ovophis monticola

	ZMB 70216

	ZMB 70218

Distribution and habitat

Views of the montane rainforest at the O. jenkinsi type locality in Tongbiguan Township

All known individuals of this viper were found in Yingjiang County, Yunnan, and it is currently believed the species is endemic to this region. This snake is found at altitudes of about 1,300 m (4,300 ft) in tropical montane rainforest. In this environment, it overlaps with other reptiles such as Lycodon chapaensis, Trimeresurus popeiorum and Pseudocalotes jingpo.^[1]^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Qiu, Xian-Chun; Wang, Jin-Ze; Xia, Zu-Yao; Jiang, Zhong-Wen; Zeng, Yan; Wang, Nan; Li, Pi-Peng; Shi, Jing-Song (30 May 2024). "A new mountain pitviper of the genus Ovophis Burger in Hoge & Romano-Hoge, 1981 (Serpentes, Viperidae) from Yunnan, China". ZooKeys (1203): 173–187. Bibcode:2024ZooK.1203..173Q. doi:10.3897/zookeys.1203.119218. ISSN 1313-2970. PMC 11161677. PMID 38855786.
^ Xu, Yuhao; Gong, Yanan; Hou, Mian; Weng, Shiyang; Liu, Shuo; Deng, Jundong; Hu, Junkang; Peng, Lifang (7 March 2024). "A New Species of the Genus Pseudocalotes (Squamata: Agamidae) from Southwest Yunnan, China". Animals. 14 (6): 826. doi:10.3390/ani14060826. ISSN 2076-2615. PMC 10967363. PMID 38539925.

[:0-1] Qiu, Xian-Chun; Wang, Jin-Ze; Xia, Zu-Yao; Jiang, Zhong-Wen; Zeng, Yan; Wang, Nan; Li, Pi-Peng; Shi, Jing-Song (30 May 2024). "A new mountain pitviper of the genus Ovophis Burger in Hoge & Romano-Hoge, 1981 (Serpentes, Viperidae) from Yunnan, China". ZooKeys (1203): 173–187. Bibcode:2024ZooK.1203..173Q. doi:10.3897/zookeys.1203.119218. ISSN 1313-2970. PMC 11161677. PMID 38855786.

[2] Xu, Yuhao; Gong, Yanan; Hou, Mian; Weng, Shiyang; Liu, Shuo; Deng, Jundong; Hu, Junkang; Peng, Lifang (7 March 2024). "A New Species of the Genus Pseudocalotes (Squamata: Agamidae) from Southwest Yunnan, China". Animals. 14 (6): 826. doi:10.3390/ani14060826. ISSN 2076-2615. PMC 10967363. PMID 38539925.

[1]

[2]