| Micrurus helleri | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Elapidae |
| Genus: | Micrurus |
| Species: | M. helleri
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| Binomial name | |
| Micrurus helleri K. Schmidt & F. Schmidt, 1925
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| Synonyms1 | |
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Micrurus helleri, also known commonly as Heller's coral snake and the western ribbon coral snake, is a species of venomous snake in the family Elapidae. The species is native to South America.1
Local common names
Local common names for Micrurus helleri include cobra coral de faixas occidental in Brazilian Portuguese and coral acintada occidental in South American Spanish.2
Etymology
The specific name, helleri, is in honor of American zoologist Edmund Heller, who collected the holotype.32
Geographic distribution
Micrurus helleri is found in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela.1
Habitat
The preferred natural habitat of Micrurus helleri is rainforest or humid forest, at elevations of 80–1,500 m (260–4,920 ft).2
Description
The color pattern of Micrurus helleri consists of rings (annuli) arranged as follows: wide black rings in triads (groups of three), the black rings separated by narrower white rings, and the triads separated by wide red rings. The rings of all colors are wider than those of other coral snakes, and the triads are fewer, 9–11 in males and only 8–11 in females.2
The holotype has a total length of 64.8 cm (25.5 in), which includes a tail length of 5.2 cm (2.0 in).1
Diet
Micrurus helleri preys upon a wide variety of poikilotherms. Large adults prefer to eat the swamp eel (Synbranchus marmoratus). Smaller individuals eat caecilians such as Oscaecilia bassleri, litter-dwelling lizards such as Bachia trisanale, blind snakes such as Amerotyphlops brongersmianus, and suitably-sized colubrid snakes.2
Reproduction
Micrurus helleri is oviparous.1
References
References
- Species Micrurus helleri at The Reptile Database www.reptile-database.org.
- Roze, J.A. (1996). Coral Snakes of the Americas: Biology, Identification, and Venoms. Malabar, Florida: Krieger Publishing Company. ISBN 0-89464-847-0. xii + 328 pp., 38 maps, 63 color photographs, 49 color pattern drawings. (Micrurus lemniscatus helleri, pp. 191–192 + Map 24 + Color 40).
- Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Micrurus lemniscatus helleri, p. 120).
Further reading
Further reading
- Freiberg M (1982). Snakes of South America. Hong Kong: T.F.H. Publications. 189 pp. ISBN 0-87666-912-7. (Micrurus lemniscatus helleri, pp. 115–116).
- Hurtado-Gómez JP, Ramírez MV, Gómez FJR, Fouquet A, Fritz U (2021). "Multilocus phylogeny clarifies relationships and diversity within the Micrurus lemniscatus complex (Serpentes: Elapidae)". Salamandra 57 (2): 229–239. (Micrurus helleri, re-elevated to species level).
- Roze J (1967). "A Checklist of the New World Venomous Coral Snakes (Elapidae), with Descriptions of New Forms". American Museum Novitates (2287): 1–60. (Micrurus lemniscatus helleri, new combination and new taxonomic status, p. 35).
- Schmidt KP, Schmidt FJW (1925). "New Coral Snakes from Peru". Field Museum of Natural History Zoological Series 12: 129–134. (Micrurus helleri, new species, pp. 129–130).