Nelson Rufino de Albuquerque

A dicephalic yellow anaconda snake, Eunectes notaeus (Serpentes: Boidae), from Southern Pantanal, Brazil

We describe a case of dicephalism in a yellow anaconda snake, Eunectes notaeus, from southern Pantanal, Brazil. The specimen exhibits two heads and two long necks, which are united on the anterior third of the body. Two hearts, three lungs, two livers, and two stomachs are also present. The left heart is larger and more cranial than the right heart although they are in the normal position. Radiographs revealed approximately 64 vertebrae in the right neck, 57 in the left neck, eight in the fusion zone, 202 in the trunk, and 52 in the tail. According to the classification adopted in the present study the specimen herein described is a proarchodichotomous specimen. This is the first record of dicephalism in Eunectes. Further, this snake represents the 28th documented case of dicephalism within the family Boidae and the 1088th case in snakes.

Diet of two sit-and-wait lizards, Phyllopezus pollicaris (Spix, 1825) (Phyllodactylidae) and Hemidactylus mabouia (Moreau de Jonnès, 1818) (Gekkonidae) in a perianthropic area of Mato Grosso do Sul, western Brazil

The dietary compositions of two sit-and-wait lizard species, Hemidactylus mabouia and Phyllopezus pollicaris, which co-occur over rocky substrate and vertical rock walls in a perianthropic area of western Brazil, were described. Both species showed a generalist feeding pattern, feeding mainly on insects. The most frequent prey items in the diet of P. pollicaris were Coleoptera, Araneae and Homoptera whereas the most important were Coleoptera and Homoptera, respectively. For H. mabouia the most frequent prey items were Araneae followed by Coleopterae and Hemiptera, whereas the most important items were H. mabouia followed by Formicidae and Hemiptera. Our identification into broader prey-types categories (i.e., order or family-level) suggests that some degree of food resource partitioning may occur, possibly through the occupation of different temporal niches.

The identity of Apostolepis pymi and placement of A. quinquelineata in the synonymy of A. nigrolineata (Serpentes, Xenodontinae)

The correct application of the names Apostolepis nigrolineata, A. quinquelineata, and A. pymi has been subject of considerable controversy. Based upon review of the literature and the characteristics used to distinguish these species from each other, we conclude that A. pymi is a valid species and that A. quinquelineata is a junior synonym of A. nigrolineata. They differ from each other in hemipenial morphology and coloration. The background color of A. nigrolineata is reddish brown (vs. brown in A. pymi). In addition, only the dorsal region of end of tail is covered by a black band in A. nigrolineata (vs. end of tail completely surrounded by a black band in A. pymi). Both species are sympatrically distributed along the lowlands of Amazonia but A. nigrolineata occurs in both western and eastern regions whereas A. pymi is restricted to eastern regions with additional records from the States of Amazonas, Rondonia, Mato Grosso and an endemic population in the state of Ceara, northeastern Brazil.

Redescription of Leptophis Cupreus (Cope) (Serpentes, Colubridae), a rare south American Colubrine Snake

Leptophis cupreus e redescrita com base em 18 especimes, incluindo o holotipo. A especie e caracterizada por ter o dorso uniformemente cobre, o que a distingue de todas as outras especies conhecidas de Leptophis. Nos apresentamos fotografias do holotipo e de um especime vivo de L. cupreus, descrevemos e ilustramos o hemipenis evertido, e plotamos a sua distribuicao conhecida.

New records of Leptophis ahaetulla ahaetulla (Serpentes, Colubridae) for Venezuela, Colombia and the placement of L. a. copei into the synonymy of L. a. ahaetulla

The taxonomic validity of Leptophis ahaetulla copei is assessed. This subspecies is distinct from the nominal subspecies on the basis of differences in the number of ventral scales, maxillary teeth and dorsal coloration. However, comparison of its type specimens with specimens of L. a. ahaetulla revealed that L. a. copei is a junior synonym of the latter. In addition, the distribution of L. a. ahaetulla is expanded from Brazil to southwestern Venezuela and southern Colombia.