Argentinian snakes

INTRODUCTION
Argentinian snakes have received much attention since the last decades of the nineteenth century.
Contributions from Burmeister (1861), Koslowsky (1898) and Serié (1915, 1921 and 1936) are still useful in
spite of the elapsed time. Several of their statements on the occurrence or the distribution of different species
in Argentina had been rejected by more recent authors, but today we are confirming that the former authors
had been right all along.
Five recent papers are extremely important: Peters & Orejas Miranda (1970), Abalos & Mischis (1975);
Cei (1986 and 1993) and Williams & Francini (1991). The Catalogue of Peters & Orejas Miranda is a
keystone in the history of South American herpetology that marked a turning point in the study of ophidians.
The influence of this work is clear in Argentina, and The Catalogue [considerably improved by Vanzolini’s
addenda (1986)] is still required reading. Abalos & Mischis (1975) gave a list of the Argentinian snakes,
updating the nomenclature and distribution of many species. Cei´s contributions, specially his books on
Argentinian reptiles, are major references for herpetologists and amateurs working in Argentina. They are of
exceptional quality. The checklist of Williams & Francini (1991) furnished the complete list of Argentinian
snakes and a quick reference for nomenclature and distribution.
All the above references were relied on during the preparation of this study. They will be mentioned only
when necessary. To avoid repetition, citations include those contributions subsequent to Williams & Francini
(1991) and Cei (1993).
This annotated checklist includes a great amount of unpublished information obtained by the authors
through collecting trips and the examination of thousands of specimens in collections. Although not all are
mentioned in the text, the collections examined are: Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales (MACN),
Buenos Aires; Museo de La Plata (MLP), La Plata, Buenos Aires; Fundación Miguel Lillo (FML),
Tucumán; Universidad Nacional de Misiones (UNAM), Posadas, Misiones; Centro de Investigaciones
Ecológicas Subtropicales del Parque Nacional Iguazú (CIES), Iguazú, Misiones; Universidad Nacional del
Nordeste (UNNEC), Corrientes; Museo Provincial de Ciencias Naturales "Florentino Ameghino" (MFA),
Santa Fe; Colección Comparativa of Mario R. Cabrera in Departamento de Diversidad Biológica and
Ecología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas, Físicas and Naturales, Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (AC);
Museo de Historia Natural "Capão de Imbuia" (MHNCI), Curitiba, Brazil; Museo Nacional de Historia
Natural del Paraguay (MHNP), Asunción, Paraguay; Museo de la Pontifícia Universidad Católica de Rio
Grande do Sul (MPC), Brazil; Museo Municipal de Oberá, Oberá, Misiones (CHMO); Museo de Ciencias
Naturales de Salta (MCN), Salta; Vivero Forestal Itaipú Binacional (IBR), Alto Paraná, Paraguay;
Serpentario “Antonio Ruiz de Montoya” (SARM), Posadas, Misiones; Centro Nacional de Iología (CENAI),
Buenos Aires, and Colección Félix de Azara, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas and Técnicas
(CFA), Buenos Aires. At present the last two collections are housed at the Museo Argentino de Ciencias
Naturales.
Despite the short time elapsed from the last publications on Argentinian snakes (Cei, 1993), there have
been several taxonomic changes that warrant an update. At the end of each description, changes and other
information are given when necessary, in “Comments” section. Synonymies include only the first author that
used the name in the literature. When a species was revalidated after its inclusion in the synonymy of
another, the revisor´s name is mentioned.
Bearing in mind the importance that this kind of work has for conservation, management, and ecology, we
refer to phytogeographic as well as geographic distribution (Fig.1). We followed Cabrera (1976) and Cabrera
& Willink (1980) up to province level, and, when we are certain, the district is included (see Appendix I and
Fig.2). It is important to note that our contribution likely will be amended in the future because some areas of
Argentina have not yet been explored. Many species are represented by few records, and there are many
transitional areas between phytogeographic provinces.
SHIS 132[2002] Giraudo and Scrocchi: Checklist of Argentinian Snakes