Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
(A)
(B)
Plate 4.82
(A) Maxillae of the African yellow-throated-big-eyed tree snake (
Thrasops
flavigularis
), French Cameroon and (B) Jackson's tree snake (
Thrasops jacksoni
),
Kampala, Uganda.
The genus,
Thrasops
, belongs to the tribe Dispholidini.
Thrasops
flavigularis
(
Plate 4.82A
) and
T. jacksoni
(
Plate 4.82B
) are active arboreal species that feed
on lizards and birds. Relatively little is known of their natural history. The markedly enlarged,
blade-like posterior maxillary teeth have a leaf-like morphology and are ungrooved (
Plate
4.82A
, arrows). There is a single documented case of a bite by
T. flavigularis
that caused
moderate local effects including edema and pain.
Plate 4.82A
, AMNH #R50573
(
T. flavigularis
) and
Plate 4.82B
, AMNH #50572 (
T. jacksoni
), photos copyright to Arie Lev.
are enlarged and separated from the anterior teeth by a diastema (Broadley and Wallach,
2002). They taper from base to tip and have slight anterior and posterior ridges, but are
ungrooved (Broadley and Wallach, 2002; Chippaux, 1999).
Plate 4.82A and B
show the
respective blade-like, markedly enlarged, ungrooved posterior maxillary teeth in speci-
mens of
T. flavigularis
and
T. jacksoni
. The same teeth in
R. aethiopissa ituriensis
(Ituri
large-eyed green tree snake or nataymankeema; see
Plate 4.83A and B
) and
R. batesi
(Bates' tree snake) are slightly enlarged, curved, and possess sharp anterior and poste-
rior ridges. However, these adaptations are less developed than those of
X. uluguruen-
sis
, in which the leaf-shaped (narrowed at the dentary base) posteriormost maxillary teeth
exhibit ridges that are broadest midway along their length (Broadley and Wallach, 2002).
4.3.1.2 Overview of the Properties, Toxinology, and Pharmacology of Venoms
of
D. typus
and
Thelotornis
spp.
The life-threatening pathology observed after some of the bites from these snakes
exhibits some correlation with lethal potency studies. Reported
D. typus
venom
i.v. LD
50
have ranged between 0.060 and 0.10 mg/kg and i.p. LD
50
have ranged
between 1.32 and 1.80 mg/kg (Christensen, 1968; Minton, 1974; Minton and Minton,
1980; Weinstein and Smith, 1993). The reported LD
50
for
T. kirtlandii
and
T. capensis
venoms were 0.25-1.24 mg/kg (i.v.) and 0.50 mg/kg (i.p.), respectively (Christensen,
1968; Kornalik et al., 1978; Weinstein and Smith, 1993; see Appendix B).
