Amami takachiho snake (Achalinus werneri)

Amami takachiho snake amongst leaf litter
Amami takachiho snake amongst leaf litter

Amami takachiho snake fact file

Amami takachiho snake description

KingdomAnimalia
PhylumChordata
ClassReptilia
OrderSquamata
FamilyColubridae
GenusAchalinus (1)

The Amami takachiho snake is one of around 15 species belonging to the very poorly known colubrid subfamily Xenodermatinae (2). The xenodermatines are mostly small to moderate sized snakes with dark-coloured, slender bodies (2) (3) (4).

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Amami takachiho snake biology

Very little is known about the Xenodermatinae, but most species appear to be highly secretive and nocturnal. In addition they are all thought to be oviparous (egg laying), and have small clutch sizes of four or fewer eggs (3)

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Amami takachiho snake range

The Amami takachiho snake is known from the Amami Islands in the Ryukyu Archipelago (Nansei Shoto), Japan (1) (5).

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Amami takachiho snake habitat

Species in the Xenodermatinae generally live in moist forest habitats (2) (3).

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Amami takachiho snake status

Classified as Vulnerable (VU) on the IUCN Red List (1).

IUCN Red List species status – Vulnerable

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Amami takachiho snake threats

Large areas of habitat in the Ryukyu Archipelago have been lost to timber plantations and urban development, with only small areas of tropical forest remaining in Amami (5).

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Amami takachiho snake conservation

There are not known to be any specific conservation measures in place for the Amami takachiho snake.

View information on this species at the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre.

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Find out more

To find out about conservation in the Ryukyu archipelago, see:

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Authentication

This information is awaiting authentication by a species expert, and will be updated as soon as possible. If you are able to help please contact:
arkive@wildscreen.org.uk

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Glossary

Colubrid
A member of the snake family Colubridae, the largest family of snakes, accounting for almost two-thirds of all species.
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References

  1. IUCN Red List (September, 2008)
    http://www.iucnredlist.org/
  2. Halliday, T. and Adler, K. (2002) The New Encyclopedia of Reptile and Amphibians. Oxford University Press, Oxford.
  3. Vitt, L.J. and Caldwell, J.P. (2009) Herpetology: An Introductory Biology of Amphibians and Reptiles. Academic Press, USA.
  4. Greene, H.W. (2000) Snakes: The Evolution of Mystery in Nature. University of California Press, Berkeley, California.
  5. Conservation International: Biodiversity Hotspots (December, 2009)
    http://www.biodiversityhotspots.org/xp/hotspots/japan/Pages/impacts.aspx

More »Related species

Four-lined snake (Elaphe quatuorlineata)Hoogstraal’s cat snake (Telescopus hoogstraali)Stripe-tailed ratsnake (Elaphe taeniura)Common garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis)Yellow-spotted wolf snake (Lycodon flavomaculatus)Red-banded snake (Dinodon rufozonatum)Big-eyed ratsnake (Ptyas dhumnades)Nilgiri keelback (Amphiesma beddomei)

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Image credit

Amami takachiho snake amongst leaf litter  
Amami takachiho snake amongst leaf litter

© Takehiko Sato

Takehiko Sato
Japan
mothnake@yahoo.co.jp
http://tefutefulife.blog107.fc2.com/

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