Agkistrodon contortrix phaeogaster

Agkistrodon contortrix phaeogaster

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Subphylum:	Vertebrata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Viperidae
Subfamily:	Crotalinae
Genus:	Agkistrodon
Species:	A. contortrix
Subspecies:	A. c. phaeogaster

Trinomial name

Agkistrodon contortrix phaeogaster
Gloyd, 1969

Synonyms

Agkistrodon contortrix phaeogaster - Gloyd, 1969^[1]

Common names: Osage copperhead.^[2]

Agkistrodon contortrix phaeogaster is a venomous pitviper subspecies^[3] found in the central region of the United States.

Additional recommended knowledge

Weighing the right way

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Description

Gloyd and Conant (1990) gives maximum total lengths of 990/723 mm for males/females, while mentioning that other sources give a maximum total length for this subspecies of 1,016 mm regardless of sex.^[2]

The color pattern is similar to that of A. c. mokasen, except that the dark bands are in sharper contrast to the lighter ground color, and that there are no smaller dark spots between them.^[4]

Geographic range

Found in the United States in eastern Kansas, extreme southeastern Nebraska and a large part of Missouri.^[2] The type locality given is "10 miles south of McLouth, Jefferson County, Kansas."^[1]

References

^ ^a ^b McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré T. 1999. Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, vol. 1. Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN 1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN 1-893777-01-4 (volume).
^ ^a ^b ^c Gloyd HK, Conant R. 1990. Snakes of the Agkistrodon Complex: A Monographic Review. Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles. 614 pp. 52 plates. LCCN 89-50342. ISBN 0-916984-20-6.
^ Agkistrodon contortrix phaeogaster (TSN 209499). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Accessed on 10 August 2007.
^ Conant R. 1975. A Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians of Eastern and Central North America. Second Edition. First published in 1958. Houghton Mifflin Company Boston. 429 pp. 48 plates. ISBN 0-395-19979-4. ISBN 0-395-19979-8 (pbk.).