Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
(C)
Liophis
(Vidal et al., 2010). Most species have a strong preference
for anuran prey (e.g., hylids, bufonids; Michaud and Dixon, 1989; Pinto and Fernandes, 2004;
Vitt, 1983), but will take other small vertebrates opportunistically. Some observations suggest
that some
Liophis
spp. may have notable tolerance for anuran skin toxins that are among the
most potent biological toxins characterized to date (e.g., the voltage-gated Na
channel mixed
agonist/antagonist, batrachotoxin, murine i.v. LD
50
—0.2 μg/kg).
Liophis epinephelus
has been
identified as a potential predator of the golden poison arrow or dart frog,
Phyllobates terribilis
(Myers et al., 1978). Thus, this species may have molecular adaptations (altered toxin-binding
sites per amino acid substitutions) to an otherwise little-exploited prey species such as in garter
snakes (
Thamnophis
spp.) that feed on newts (including the rough-skinned newt,
Taricha
granulosa
) without any toxic effects (these newts contain the potent voltage-gated Na
channel
antagonist, tetrodotoxin), but with a cost to performance caused by changes in the biophysical
properties, and ion selectivity of the toxin-resistant Na
channels (Geffeney et al., 2005; Lee
et al., 2011).
Liophis melanotus
is called “doctor snake” in Trinidad and Tobago, as it is believed
to have the ability to heal other snakes (Boos, 2001). As noted by Mole (1924) and Boos (2001),
this belief has occurred elsewhere, and may be derived from the Greek myth describing the
resuscitation/reanimation of
Glaucus
by
Polydus
after observing a dead snake revived by another
using leaves. There are only a handful of well-documented bites by
Liophis
spp. (Section 4.1;
Table 4.1
), and the symptoms/signs consisted of mild-to-moderate local effects. A majority of
retrospectively reviewed cases reported by Salomão et al. (2003) consisted of only mild local
effects, but many of these cases lacked verified identification of the precise species responsible
for the bite. This emphasizes the importance of verifying the species responsible for a reported
snakebite. The confirmation of the most recent taxonomic status of any snake involved in a
medically significant case is similarly valuable as this can influence management of medically
significant bites by species of unknown medical importance. This is especially applicable to
members of a taxonomically unstable genus such as
Liophis
as this group will very likely be
subjected to considerable re-arrangement in the future.
(A) Goldbauchnattar; culebra listada, culebra ranera
(
Liophis anomalus
), Magdalena,
Buenos Aires, Argentina.
This species is found in Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina, and Brazil.
There are no documented bites by this species.
(B) Military swamp snake, military ground snake; cobra d' agua (
Liophis miliaris
), Ribera
Norte, Acassuso, Buenos Aires, Argentina.
A widely ranging, semiaquatic South American
species, it attains an average adult total length of approximately 0.7 m. It favors anuran and piscine
prey, but will take small mammals. The few well-documented cases of bites by this species have
included mild-to-moderate local effects. As in some cases of bites by non-front-fanged colubroids
(especially South American species), occasional victims bitten by
L. miliaris
with moderate local
effects have been inappropriately treated with antivenom (see Section 4.1;
Table 4.1
).
(C) Military ground snake; cobra lisa pampeana, cobra preta de banhad (
Liophis
Plate 4.29
(
Continued
)
