Family Dipsadidae
Borikenophis portoricensis (Reinhardt & Lütken, 1862)
Figure 3F
Materials examined. PUERTO RICO – Arecibo • Mata de
Plátano Field Station and Nature Reserve; 18.414, -66.729; 151 m above
sea level; Justin Matthew Bernstein, Camilo Andrés Calderón-Acevedo,
Pedro Ivo Mônico, Lázaro Willian Viñola-Lopez, J. Angel Soto-Centeno;
Individual 1 – found under tarp from an old harp net bat trap on side
of trail, ~10 m from the entrance of Cueva de los
Culebrones, at 12:52 PM.
Identification. Easily diagnosed from blind snakes
(Anillotyphlops , Typhlops ), by its significantly larger
size total length and circumference, and enlarged eyes. As a racer, it
is not similar in appearance to Xenocrophis orChilabothrus . Borikenophis portoricensis is distinguished
from Magliophis by its larger size (Magliophis~ 0.5 m; Borikenophis from this study
~1–1.2 m total length). Borikenophis
portoricensis can be distinguished from its congeners by distribution
and morphology: B. prymnus is smaller and paler in color and is
found in southern Puerto Rico and B. variegatus is endemic to
Mona Island.