NOVEDAD ZOOGEOGRÁFICA

Tachymenis chilensis Schegel, 1837 (Reptilia: Squamata: Dipsadidae). New record and geographic distribution map

 

Luciano J. Avila¹, Mariana Morando¹, Luciana C. Belver²

¹ Centro Nacional Patagónico, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CENPAT-CONICET). Boulevard Almirante Brown 2915. 9120. Puerto Madryn, Chubut, Argentina.
² Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San Juan Bosco, Sede Esquel. Ruta Nacional 259, Km 4, 9200. Esquel, Chubut, Argentina.

Recibida: 03/11/11
Aceptada: 14/05/12

 

Locality.- Tachymenis chilensis Schlegel, 1837. República Argentina, Chubut Province, Futaleufú Department. Suburbs of Esquel city, along Ruta Nacional 259 to Trevelin on El Pinar, Roberts Farm. (Fig. 1). 42°918833 S, 71°341917 W; 570 m elevation.

Figure 1. Map showing the distribution of Tachymenis chiliensis in Argentina according to our records from bibliography and voucher specimens. New record is marked with (1). Southermost record in Río Negro province from a collection specimen (LJAMM-CNP 7511) is marked (2). Green dots: specimens cited by Administración de Parques Nacionales web page, green dots encircled by black: specimens in MVZ collection, orange dots: other specimens deposited in LJAMM-CNP collection. Orange broken line: approximate southern limit of distribution in Chile. Red broken dots: approximate distribution cited by Cei (1986). Gray dots: main localities in the region for reference, gray lines main roads. Yellow outlines: National Parks in Argentina.

Remarks.- Tachymenis chilensis Schlegel, 1837 is a small-sized dipsadidae snake (maximum SVL = 700 mm; Cei 1986) widely distributed in the central part of Chile (Ortiz 1974; Simonetti 2001, Valenzuela- Dellarossa et al., 2010). In Argentina it has been cited from Neuquén and Río Negro provinces (Donoso Barros 1966; Cei 1986; Giraudo and Scrocchi 2002, Scolaro 2003) but the majority of the records lack voucher specimens. This species is usually found related to Nothofagus forest or in ecotonal areas where patches of Nothofagus alternate with bushy areas with plants characteristic of the Patagonian steppe. In Cei (1986), the distribution of T. chiliensis was restricted to a small area in southern Neuquén and western Río Negro Provinces and in Scolaro (2003) it was restricted to a stripe in the same zone, in both cases without any ingression to Chubut province (Fig. 1). In the Biodiversity Information System of Administración de Parques Nacionales ( 2011), several localities, including three from Chubut province, are listed with reference to voucher specimens deposited in CRUB (Colección de Reptiles, Universidad del Comahue, Bariloche) and MVZ (Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, Berkeley) collections. But since these localities were not formally published in any journal or book, they are part of the "gray literature", thus we add those points in Figure 1 to show a general reference about the distribution area of the species. Specimens of MVZ collection, recently revised by one of us (LJA), are marked in Fig. 1. Here, we present the first vouchered record from Chubut province (Fig. 2), and southernmost record for the species; to our knowledge the previous southernmost registered specimen was based on collected specimens from Piltriquitrón Mountain in El Bolson, Los Lagos Department, Rio Negro Province (LJAMM-CNP 7511). On September, 20th 2011, we received a donation of an adult alive animal (SVL = 472 mm, TL = 557 mm) collected by a farmer, A. Cayul on his property, in the suburban area of Esquel city. Habitat of the collected site was an edge of an artificial plantation of Pinus spp., but close to it, still persist some patches of Nothofagus forest. This locality is situated 100 km (airline) south of our southernmost record for the species in Piltriquitrón Mountain, in Río Negro province and from the Chubut-Río Negro limits. Voucher specimen is deposited in the herpetological collection LJAMM-CNP of Centro Nacional Patagónico (CENPAT-CONICET) under number LJAMM-CNP 14448.

Figure 2. Adult Tachymenis chiliensis from vicinity of Esquel city (LJAMM-CNP 14448).

APPENDIX 1

Other specimens examined

Argentina: NEUQUEN: Department Huiliches, pampa near Hogar Escuela Maria Margarita, 1.5 km E, 4 km S Cerro de la Bandera: MVZ Herps 232544. Department Los Lagos, 3 km NW Confluencia: MVZ 180030, Arroyo Corral, 16 km NNE Nahuel Huapi MVZ 180031. RIO NEGRO: Department Bariloche E end of Lago Steffen MVZ Herps 180043. Department Pilcaniyeu, Ruta Provincial 23, 4.3 km W Pilcaniyeu Viejo: LJAMM-CNP 3879. Departamento Lacar, Ruca Hue, San Martin de los Andes: LJAMM-CNP 8252.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We thank to the Cayul family for donation of the specimen. I. Minoli kindly provided the color photographs of the live specimen.

LITERATURA CITADA

1. Administración de Parques Nacionales. 2011. Sistema de Información de Biodiversidad. Proyecto de Conservación de la Biodiversidad - Donación GEF-BIRF-TF 028372- AR. Base de datos electrónica accesible en http://www. parquesnacionales.gov.ar (ultimo acceso el 10/11/2011).         [ Links ]

2. Cei, J.M. 1986. Reptiles del Centro, Centro-Oeste y Sur de la Argentina. Herpetofauna de las zonas áridas y semiáridas. Museo Regionale di Scienze Naturali Torino. Monografie IV: 1-427.         [ Links ]

3. Donoso-Barros, R. 1966. Reptiles de Chile. Editorial Universitaria. Santiago.         [ Links ]

4. Giraudo, A.R. & Scrocchi, G.J. 2002. Argentinean snakes. An annotated checklist. Smithsonian Herpetological Information Service 132: 1-53.         [ Links ]

5. Scolaro, J.A. 2003. Reptiles Patagónicos. Sur. Una guía de campo. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia San Juan Bosco. Trelew.         [ Links ]

6. Simonetti, J.A. 2001. Presence of Tachymenis chilensis chilensis Reserva Nacional Los Queules, Central Chile. Gayana 65: 219-220.         [ Links ]

7. Valenzuela-Dellarossa, G.,Nuñez, H., Heibl, C. & Ortiz, J.C. 2010. Reptilia, Serpentes, Colubridae, Tachymenis Wiegmann 1836: Latitudinal and altitudinal distribution extension in Chile. Check List 6: 5-6.         [ Links ]