Subsessor

Subsessor
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Homalopsidae
Genus: Subsessor
J.C. Murphy & Voris, 2014
Species:
S. bocourti
Binomial name
Subsessor bocourti
(Jan, 1865)
Synonyms
  • Hypsirhina bocourti
    Jan, 1865
  • Enhydris bocourti
    — M.A. Smith, 1943
  • Subsessor bocourti
    — J.C. Murphy & Voris, 2014
  • Enhydris bocourti
    — Chan-ard et al., 2015

Subsessor is a genus of snake in the family Homalopsidae. The genus is monotypic, containing the sole species Subsessor bocourti. The species is commonly known as Bocourt's mud snake or Bocourt's water snake and has traditionally been placed in the genus Enhydris.

Etymology

Both the specific name, bocourti, and the common name, Bocourt's water snake, refer to French zoologist Marie Firmin Bocourt.

Geographic range and habitat

S. bocourti is found in a wide range of stagnant fresh water habitats in Mainland Southeast Asia. Records from China are questionable.

Description

A robust snake, S. bocourti can surpass 1 m (3.3 ft) in length.

Reproduction

S. bocourti is a live bearing species, giving birth to, on average, 3–8 fully formed neonate snakes.[citation needed]

Diet

S. bocourti feeds on frogs, fishes, and crustaceans.

Commercial use

Bocourt's water snake is widely caught for its skin and sometimes also eaten.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Murphy, J. (2010). "Subsessor bocourti". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2010 e.T176692A7284792. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T176692A7284792.en. Retrieved 12 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Subsessor bocourti at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 29 December 2016.
  3. ↑ Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Enhydris bocourti, p. 28).

Further reading