cryptic species within the dendrophidion vinitor complex in middle ...

SPECIES IN THE DENDROPHIDION VINITOR COMPLEX N Cadle 213
Figure 15. Dendrophidion crybelum in life from the type
locality (paratypes). (A) LACM 114107 (adult female, 631 mm
SVL). (B) LACM 114108 (juvenile female, 298 mm SVL). From
color slides by Roy W. McDiarmid.
followed distally by a very short apex
ornamented with a crowded series of
flounces, calyces, and (on the apex proper)
free-standing ridges. Small apical region
essentially covered with these ornaments
(i.e., nude areas very small).
Sexual Dimorphism and Ontogenetic
Variation. Small sample sizes hamper a full
exploration of sexual dimorphism, and the
only statistically significant standard scale
count differences are the greater number of
ventrals in females compared with males (p
% 0.001; Table 1) and a different point of
dorsal scale reduction (mean ventral numbers
96 and 102.1 for males and females,
respectively; p , 0.001). Males and females
do not differ significantly in mean adult SVL
(581 mm and 574 mm SVL, respectively),
subcaudal number, or the point of dorsocaudal
reduction. The difference between
male and female relative tail lengths is
marginally significant (p 5 0.045). The
mean points of dorsocaudal reduction in
male and female D. crybelum differ by less
than one scale, and this character presents a
departure from the pattern of sexual dimorphism
in D. vinitor and D. apharocybe,
which are sexually dimorphic for this
character (Table 1). Specimens ,300 mm
SVL have relatively shorter tails (31–34% of
total length, 46–52% of SVL; N 5 4, males
and females combined) than larger specimens
(Table 1).
Coloration In Life. I am unaware of
previously published photographs of D.
crybelum. Figure 15 presents photographs
of D. crybelum in life from color slides by
Roy W. McDiarmid. An adult female
(LACM 114107, Fig. 15A; the same specimen
is illustrated in Fig. 16A) has a deep
chocolate brown ground color; pale bands
washed with orange on the neck and the
posterior two-thirds of the body, grayish in
between, and invested irregularly with black
(tendency for the bands to form transverse
series of ocelli posteriorly); a pale vertebral
line washed with orange; and whitish lips.
The juvenile (LACM 114108, Fig. 15B) is
patterned similarly but has a pale brown
ground color (somewhat tan); pale bands/
ocelli and pale vertebral line grayish anteriorly,
invested with yellowish brown posteriorly
and on the first two or three bands on
the neck. McDiarmid’s slide collection also
has a photo of LACM 114106 in life, an
adult female with clouded eyes (preparing
to shed). Its coloration appears similar to
that of LACM 114107 except perhaps a
paler brown ground color (not as pale as the
juvenile described above) and more orangish
wash in the pale bands. The venter of
LACM 148614 (339 mm SVL) was described
as ‘‘yellowish’’ (Roy W. McDiarmid,
field note).
Coloration in Preservative. Overall dorsal
coloration predominantly grays and browns
(tendency for brown with stratum corneum
intact, grays without). A series of pale gray
to pale brown crossbands (sometimes offset)
on the body from the neck to the vent,
continuing onto the tail as a variably distinct
series of pale dorsolateral spots (Fig. 16).
Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology harv-160-04-01.3d 11/4/12 19:59:25 213