Fadhil Rhadi¹*, Rihab Mohammed¹, Nasrullah Pouyani² and Eskandar Pouyani³

¹Al-Qasim Green University, Faculty of Agriculture, Babylon, Iraq
²Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran
³Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Hakim Sabzevari University, Sabzevar, Iran

*Corresponding Author: Fadhil Rhadi, Al-Qasim Green University, Faculty of Agriculture, Babylon, Iraq.

Received: November 14, 2022; Published: November 23, 2022

Abstract

In Iraq, Montpellier Snakes belongs to Malpolon insignitus (Geoffroy de St-Hilaire, 1827). Their subspecific membership is sometimes still debated. The occurrence of the Eastern Montpellier Snake has been reported from central and southern Iraq and, in this study, we report new localities. To know the subspecific status of this species, we examined morphological characters. 16 morphometric and meristic characters were studied in 23 specimens of Eastern Montpellier Snake. The main features are the lack of the black saddle, only typical of the Western Montpellier Snake Malpolon monspessulanus (Hermann, 1804), in males the general colour of both the head and the nape is rather light and resembles the light overall dorsum colour. Females present a marbled pattern but usually forming a dark longitudinal strip on the flank. The number of ventral scales is quite low: 164-177 and mid-body dorsals are arranged in 17 rows. Our specimens raising features absolutely typical of the subspecies Malpolon insignitus fuscus (Fleischmann, 1831). Even if morphological characters are clear, it will be interesting to know the ecological preferences of this species in Iraq, and to know its genetic diversity with molecular studies.

Keywords:Eastern Montpellier Snake; Central and Southern Iraq; Malpolon Insignitus Fuscus

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Citation

Citation: Fadhil Rhadi., et al. “On the Occurrence of the Eastern Montpellier Snake in Central and Southern Iraq with Some Sexual Dimorphism Remarks". ActaActa Scientific Veterinary Sciences 4.12 (2022): 135-138.

Copyright

Copyright: © 2022 Fadhil Rhadi., et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.