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Découverte et redescription de l'holotype d'Ahaetulla pulverulenta (Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854) (Reptilia, Serpentes, Colubridae), avec une remarque sur le statut de Dryinus fuscus Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854

Patrick DAVID & Alain DUBOIS

fr Zoosystema 27 (1) - Pages 163-178

Published on 31 March 2005

Discovery and redescription of the holotype of Ahaetulla pulverulenta (Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854) (Reptilia, Serpentes, Colubridae), with a note on the status of Dryinus fuscus Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854

We discovered in the collections of the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle of Paris a mislabelled specimen of Ahaetulla pulverulenta (Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854) collected in Sri Lanka by Louis-Théodore Leschenault. On the basis of historical data, we show that this specimen (MNHN 7565) is the holotype of the species; it is here described in detail. We also examine some aspects of the synonymy of this species. The description and the status of the nominal taxon Dryinus fuscus Duméril, Bibron & Duméril, 1854 are discussed, and a neotype is designated to fix its status as a synonym of Ahaetulla nasuta (Bonnaterre, 1790).


Keywords:

Reptilia, Serpentes, Colubridae, nomenclature, Ahaetulla pulverulenta, Dryinus fuscus, neotype.

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