Zamenis scalaris (SCHINZ, 1822)

Find more photos by Google images search:

Higher Taxa	Colubridae, Colubrinae, Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes)
Subspecies
Common Names	E: Ladder Snakes G: Treppennatter D: Trapslang
Synonym	Coluber scalaris SCHINZ 1822: 123 Rhinechis agassizii Xenodon Michahelles SCHLEGEL 1837: 92 (fide DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1854) Rhinechis scalaris — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1854: 227 Coluber scalaris — BOULENGER 1894: 65 Coluber scalaris — BOULENGER 1913 Elaphe scalaris — KAHL et al. 1980: 227 Elaphe scalaris — ENGELMANN et al 1993 Elaphe scalaris — SCHULZ 1996: 229 Rhinechis scalaris — HELFENBERGER 2001 Rhinechis scalaris — UTIGER et al. 2002 Rhinechis scalaris — AGUILAR 2005 Rhinechis scalaris — VENCHI & SINDACO 2006 Rhinechis scalaris — GRUBER 2009 Rhinechis scalaris — PYRON et al. 2011 Zamenis scalaris — ZAHER et al. 2012 Rhinechis scalaris — SINDACO et al. 2013: 135 Rhinechis scalaris — KWET & TRAPP 2015 Zamenis scalaris — WALLACH et al. 2014: 809 Zamenis scalaris — FIGUEROA et al. 2016 Rhinechis scalaris — DIECKMANN 2018 Zamenis scalaris — SALVI et al. 2018 Zamenis scalaris — SPEYBROECK et al. 2020
Distribution	Spain (except for the North, introduced to Menorca, Ibiza), Portugal, Gibraltar, S France Type locality: S France (Schinz, 1822)
Reproduction	oviparous
Types	Type: nondesignated, location unknown (fide V. Wallach, pers. comm.)
Diagnosis	Diagnosis (genus): The only external feature that differentiated the genera Rhinechis and Zamenis is the rostral shield (Boulenger, 1894; Venchi & Sindaco, 2006). In R. scalaris the rostral shield forms an acute angle posteriorly, clearly pointing behind and wedged between the internasal scales, which represents a unique trait in ratsnakes (Boulenger, 1894, Salvi et al. 2018).
Comment	Distribution: Might occur in Morocco (fide JOGER 1983). Listed as questionable for Italy by Geniez 2018 (only ONE specimen found in Liguria, possibly introduced from France? [E. RAZZETTI, pers. comm.]). For a map see Sindaco et al. 2013. Type species: Rhinechis agassizii (= Rhinechis scalaris) is the type species of the genus Rhinechis MICHAHELLES in WAGLER 1833. Synonymy: Rhinechis is nested within Zamenis in several studies (reviewed by Salvi et al. 2018) including Zaher et al. 2012 (Appendix S1) who do not recommend any taxonomic changes. WALLACH et al. 2014: 809 synonymized Rhinechis with Zamenis. However, with an extended dataset Salvi et al. 2018 found Rhinechis and Zamenis to be monophyletic each. Behavior: Geniez (2018) says that the snake is “quite lethargic” but some reports found the species to be rather aggressive (e.g. R. Leye, pers. comm., 21 Jan 2021).
References	Aguilar, F. 2005. Rhinechis scalaris - Ladder Snake. Reptilia (GB) (40): 43-46 - get paper here BARBADILLO, L.J. 1983. About the distribution of amphibians and reptiles in the province of Burgos. Goal. I am. Cat. Ictio. Herp. 5-10-10-7 - get paper here Bonny, Klaus 1998. Elaphe scalaris (Schinz, 1822) - Haltung und Vermehrung der Treppennatter im Terrarium. Elaphe 6 (4): 13-16 Boulenger, G. A. 1913. The snakes of Europe. Methusen & Co. Ltd, London, 151 pp. Boulenger, George A. 1894. Catalogue of the snakes in the British Museum (Natural History). Volume II., Containing the Conclusion of the Colubridæ Aglyphæ. British Mus. (Nat. Hist.), London, xi, 382 pp. - get paper here CASTRO-EXPÓSITO, ARANCHA DE; ENRIQUE GARCÍA-MUÑOZ & FRANCISCO GUERRERO. 2021. Reptile diversity in a Mediterranean wetlands landscape (Alto Guadalquivir region, southeastern Spain): are they affected by human impacts? Acta Herpetologica 16(1): 27–36. - get paper here Cheylan,M. & Guillaume,C.P. 1993. Elaphe scalaris - Treppennatter. In: Böhme,W. (ed.), Handbuch der Reptilien und Amphibien Europas, Band 3/I., Schlangen (Serpentes) I. Aula-Verlag Wiesbaden, pp. 397-430 Cortés, J.E. 1982. The herpetofauna of Gibraltar - status, recent history and current research. British Journal of Herpetology 6: 273-275 - get paper here DI NICOLA, MATTEO RICCARDO 2019. A revised dichotomous key to the snakes of Italy (Reptilia, Squamata, Serpentes), according to recent systematic updates. Zootaxa 4686 (2): 294–296 - get paper here Dieckmann, Martin 2018. Das südliche Frankreich und seine Herpetofauna. Terraria-Elaphe 2018 (2): 14-28 - get paper here Engelmann, W.E. et al. 1993. Lurche und Kriechtiere Europas. Neumann Verlag (Radebeul, Germany), 440 pp. Febrer-Serra, M. M., Lassnig, M. N., Colomar, M. V., & Gomila, A. S. 2021. Tail breakage and predatory pressure upon two invasive snakes (Serpentes: Colubridae) at two islands in the Western Mediterranean. Canadian Journal of Zoology - get paper here Feriche, M≤nica;Pleguezuelos, Juan M.;Cerro, Angeles 1993. Sexual dimorphism and sexing of mediterranean colubrids based on external characteristics. Journal of Herpetology 27 (4): 357-362 - get paper here Fernández-Ortín, Daniel; Gregorio Sánchez-Montes, Íñigo Martínez-Solano 2019. A catalogue of reptiles of Monfragüe National Park (Spain), with molecular characterization of populations of Blanus WAGLER, 1830 in this protected area. Basic and Applied Herpetology - get paper here Figueroa A, McKelvy AD, Grismer LL, Bell CD, Lailvaux SP 2016. A Species-Level Phylogeny of Extant Snakes with Description of a New Colubrid Subfamily and Genus. PLoS One 11 (9): e0161070.doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0161070 - get paper here Geniez, Philippe 2018. Snakes of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Princeton University Press, 384 pp. - get paper here Glandt, Dieter;Schlüpmann, Martin;Thiesmeier, Burkhard 1998. Herpetologische Beobachtungen in der Algarve, Südportugal. Zeitschrift für Feldherpetologie 5: 181-208 - get paper here Gruber, U. 2009. Die Schlangen Europas, 2. Aufl. Kosmos Naturführer, 266 pp. GUERRERO-CASADO, JOSÉ; ANTONIO CARPIO, MARTA CANÓS-BURGUETE, MIZAR TORRIJO-SALESA & FRANCISCO S. TORTOSA. 2022. The modernization of traditional vineyards into intensive trellis systems reduces the species richness and abundance of reptiles. Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research 20(2): e0302. - get paper here Helfenberger, Notker 2001. Phylogenetic relationship of Old World Ratsnakes based on visceral organ topography, osteology, and allozyme variation. Russ. J. Herpetol. (Suppl.): 1-56 - get paper here Joger U 1983. Book Review: Welch, Herpetology of Africa, Krieger 1982. Salamandra 19 (1-2): 102-104 - get paper here Kahl B, Gaupp P & Schmidt G 1980. Das Terrarium. Falken Verlag, Niederhausen (Germany), 336 pp. Kreiner, G. 2009. Die Schlangen Nordspaniens - Reiseeindrücke aus dem Kantabrischen Gebirge und angrenzenden Gebieten. Draco 10 (39): 38-48 - get paper here Kwet, A. 2010. Reptilien und Amphibien Europas. Kosmos-Verlag, Stuttgart, 252 pp. Kwet, Axel & Benny Trapp 2014. Liste der Reptilien Europas. Draco 15 (60): 72-79 - get paper here Lantermann, Werner & Yvonne Lantermann 2015. Reptilien- und Amphibienfauna der Quinta do Barranco da Estrada im portugiesischen Alentejo – ein Reisebericht. Terraria-Elaphe 2015 (3): 44-48 - get paper here Lenk, P.; Joger, U. & Wink, M. 2001. Phylogenetic relationships among European ratsnakes of the genus Elaphe Fitzinger based on mitochondrial DNA sequence comparisons. Amphibia-Reptilia 22 (3): 329-339 - get paper here Malkmus, R. 1982. Beitrag zur Verbreitung der Amphibien und Reptilien in Portugal. Salamandra 18 (3-4): 218-299 - get paper here Malkmus, R. 1990. Herpetofaunistische Daten aus Nordostportugal. Salamandra 26 (2-3): 165-176 - get paper here Malkmus, R. 1995. Die Amphibien und Reptilien Portugals, Madeiras und der Azoren. Die Neue Brehm-Bücherei, Bd. 621. Westarp Wissenschaften (Magdeburg)/Spektrum Akademischer Verlag (Heidelberg) Malkmus, R. 2011. Talsperrenmarathon in Portugals Norden. Elaphe 19 (3): 38-43 Martinez-Freiria, Fernando; Marcial Lorenzo and Miguel Lizana 2019. Zamenis scalaris prefers abandoned citrus orchards in Eastern Spain. Ecological insights from a radio-tracking survey. Amphibia-Reptilia 40 (1): 113-119 - get paper here Moura, M.R., Costa, H.C., Abegg, A.D., Alaminos, E., Angarita-Sierra, T., Azevedo, W.S., Cabral, H., Carvalho, P., Cechin, S., Citeli, N., Dourado, A.C.M., Duarte, A.F.V., França, F.G.R., Freire, E.M.X., Garcia, P.C.A., Mol, R., Montero, R., Moraes-d 2022. Unwrapping broken tails: Biological and environmental correlates of predation pressure in limbless reptiles. Journal of Animal Ecology. 92(2):324–337 - get paper here Naulleau, G. 1987. Les serpents de France, 2.ed. Rev. Francaise d'Aquariologie, Herpet. (Nancy) 56 pp. - get paper here Nulchis, V., M. Biaggini, M., Carretero, M.A. & Harris, D.J. 2008. Unexpectedly low mitochondrial DNA variation within the ladder snake Rhinechis scalaris. North-Western Journal of Zoology 4 (1): 019-124 - get paper here O’Shea, M. 2018. The Book of Snakes. Ivy Press / Quarto Publishing, London, - get paper here Pfau, J. 1988. Beitrag zur Verbreitung der Herpetofauna in der Niederalgarve (Portugal). Salamandra 24 (4): 258-275 - get paper here Picó, G.; M.J. Fernández, J.E. Moreno and V. Colomar. 2019. Control of the ladder snake (Rhinechis scalaris) on Formentera using experimental live-traps. In: Veitch et al., eds. Island invasives, IUCN, pp. 332-336 Pinya, Samuel and Miguel A. Carretero. 2011. The Balearic herpetofauna: a species update and review on the evidence. Acta Herpetologica 6 (1): 59-80 - get paper here Pleguezuelos, Juan M.; Feriche, Mónica 2006. Reproductive ecology of a Mediterranean ratsnake, the ladder snake Rhinechis scalaris (Schinz, 1822). The Herpetological Journal 16: 177-182 - get paper here Pleguezuelos, Juan M.; Mónica Feriche, Senda Reguero, Xavier Santos 2010. Patterns of tail breakage in the ladder snake (Rhinechis scalaris) reflect differential predation pressure according to body size. Zoology 113 (5): 269-274 - get paper here Salvi D, Mendes J, Carranza S, Harris DJ. 2018. Evolution, biogeography and systematics of the western Palaearctic Zamenis ratsnakes. Zoologica Scripta 47 (4): 441-461 - get paper here Santos, X., Pleguezuelos, J. M., Chergui, B., Geniez, P., & Cheylan, M. 2022. Citizen-science data shows long-term decline of snakes in southwestern Europe. Biodiversity and Conservation, 1-17 - get paper here Schinz, H. R. 1822. Das Thierreich eingetheilt nach dem Bau der Thiere als Grundlage ihrer Naturgeschichte und der vergleichenden Anatomie von dem Herrn Ritter von Cuvier. Vol. 2. J. G. Cotta, Stuttgart. - get paper here Schlegel, H. 1837. Essai sur la physionomie des serpens. Partie Descriptive. La Haye (J. Kips, J. HZ. et W. P. van Stockum), 606 S. + xvi - get paper here Schlüter, U. 2009. Die Schlangenfauna Europas. Draco 10 (39): 4-21 - get paper here Schlüter, U. 2012. The Rock. Die Herpetofauna Gibraltars. Reptilia (Münster) 17 (94): 93-101 - get paper here Schulz, K. D. 1996. Eine Monographie der Schlangengattung Elaphe Fitzinger. Bushmaster, Berg (CH): 1-460 Schulz, Klaus-Dieter 1996. A monograph of the colubrid snakes of the genus Elaphe Fitzinger. Koeltz Scientific Books, 439 pp. Silva-Rocha I, Salvi D, Sillero N, Mateo JA, Carretero MA 2015. Snakes on the Balearic Islands: An Invasion Tale with Implications for Native Biodiversity Conservation. PLoS One 10 (4): e0121026. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0121026 - get paper here Sindaco, R.; Alberto Venchi & Cristina Grieco 2013. The Reptiles of the Western Palearctic, Volume 2: Annotated Checklist and Distributional Atlas of the Snakes of Europe, North Africa, Middle East and Central Asia, with an Update to Volume 1. Edizioni Belvedere, Latina (Italy), 543 pp. - get paper here Speybroeck, Jeroen; Wouter Beukema, Christophe Dufresnes, Uwe Fritz, Daniel Jablonski, Petros Lymberakis, Iñigo Martínez-Solano, Edoardo Razzetti, Melita Vamberger, Miguel Vences, Judit Vörös0, Pierre-André Crochet 2020. Species list of the European herpetofauna – 2020 update by the Taxonomic Committee of the Societas Europaea Herpetologica.. Amphibia-Reptilia 41: 139-189 - get paper here Stevens, Kevin 1995. The European ratsnakes of the genus Elaphe. British Herpetological Society Bulletin (54): 10-20 Trutnau, L. 1975. Europäische Amphibien und Reptilien. Belser Verlag, Stuttgart 212 pp. Utiger, Urs, Notker Helfenberger, Beat Schätti, Catherine Schmidt, Markus Ruf and Vincent Ziswiler 2002. Molecular systematics and phylogeny of Old World and New World ratsnakes, Elaphe Auct., and related genera (Reptilia, Squamata, Colubridae). Russ. J. Herpetol. 9 (2): 105-124. - get paper here Venchi, Alberto and Roberto Sindaco 2006. Annotated checklist of the reptiles of the Mediterranean countries, with keys to species identification. Part 2 -Snakes (Reptilia, Serpentes). Annali del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale "G. Doria", Genova, XCVIII: 259-364 Wagler, J. 1833. Descriptiones et icones amphibiorum. Vol. 3. J. G. Cotttae, Stuttgartiae, Monachii et Tubingiae, xxv-xxxvi pp. - get paper here Wallach, Van; Kenneth L. Williams , Jeff Boundy 2014. Snakes of the World: A Catalogue of Living and Extinct Species. [type catalogue] Taylor and Francis, CRC Press, 1237 pp. Warnke, Lars W 2017. Eine Schlange mit Charakter: Haltung und Nachzucht der Treppennatter (Rhinechis scalaris). Terraria-Elaphe 2017 (6): 24-30 - get paper here Zaher, Hussam; Felipe g. Grazziotin, Roberta Graboski, ricardo g. fuentes Paola sáncheZ-martineZ giovanna g. montingelli ya-Ping Zhang, robert W. murPhy 2012. Phylogenetic relationships of the genus Sibynophis (Serpentes: Colubroidea). Pap. Avuls. Zool. 52 (12): 141-149 - get paper here
External links	IUCN Red List National Center for Biotechnology Information http://www.hylawerkgroep.be/jeroen/index.php?id=16 http://www.hot-area.com/cae/divulgac/guiarept.htm http://www.lacerta.de/AS/Taxon.php?Genus=49&Species=342 http://www.ratsnakes.com/species.html http://www.biodiversityexplorer.org/reptiles/squamata/chamaeleonidae… http://www.bio.vu.nl/thb/users/cor/reptilia.html http://www.hylawerkgroep.be/jeroen/index.php?id=23 http://www.arod.com.au/arod/reptilia/Squamata/Scincidae/Cryptoblepharus… http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:8674432E-9F2B-4195-86A8… http://www.reptarium.cz/foto.php?cid=9&page=260&id=1893 http://www.geocities.com/Area51/Vault/1780/photos1.html http://www.ddgi.es/espais/iserpdes.htm http://www.seh-herpetology.org/images/atlas/pdf/ophidia/elasca.pdf Google images

Is it interesting? Share with others:

As link to this species use URL address:

https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Zamenis&species=scalaris

without field 'search_param'. Field 'search_param' is used for browsing search result.

Please submit feedback about this entry to the curator