Scientists from four Brazilian institutions announced Tuesday
the discovery of a new species of non-venomous snake that inhabits the
savannas in the central part of the country.
The new serpent has been dubbed Atractus spinalis and belongs
to the Dipsadidae family, which includes species that inhabit several
countries in the Americas and some Caribbean islands.
The new snake was found and identified by scientists of the federal
universities of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, who carried out their
studies in collaboration with researchers from the Brazilian National
Center for Research and Conservation of Reptiles and Amphibians and with
the support of the Boticario Group Foundation for Nature Protection.
The specimen found is a foot long, its skin is reddish with light
brown markings and is of a yellowish hue underneath, the Boticario
foundation said in a statement.
The snakewas found under some rocks in the Serra do Espinhaco, a
mountain range that extends between the savannas in the states of Minas
Gerais and Bahia.
Atractus spinalis joins the 1,815 species of reptiles and
amphibians already identified in Brazil, although scientists believe
there are many more that have yet to be discovered
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