2-foot-long predator found dead in fish trap in China turns out to be new species
In a river of southern China, a 2-foot-long predator noticed some caged fish. But the easy meal didn’t go as planned. When scientists later checked the fish trap, they found an orange-bellied creature dead inside.
It turned out to be a new species.
Researchers visited several sites in Yunnan Province in 2023 and 2024 to survey wildlife, according to a study published July 9 in the peer-reviewed journal ZooKeys. The area was a known biodiversity hotspot.
During the surveys, researchers found two unfamiliar-looking snakes, one in a fish trap and another along a road, the study said. Taking a closer look at the reptiles, researchers quickly realized they’d discovered a new species: Hebius citrinoventer, or the Yingjiang keelback snake.
Yingjiang keelback snakes can reach about 2.5 feet in length, the study said. They have “stout” bodies, “long” tails, “flattened” heads with “large” eyes and slightly textured scales.
Photos show the unique coloring of a Yingjiang keelback snake. Seen from above, it has a dark brown band down the center of its back and a “checkered” yellow-orange-brown pattern on its sides.
Underneath, the snake’s belly is “pale orange,” the study said and a photo shows.
Researchers said they named the new species “citrinoventer” after the Latin words “citrinus,” meaning “yellowish-orange or orange,” and “venter,” meaning “belly or underside,” because of its unique stomach.
Yingjiang keelback snakes are “semi-aquatic” predators and live in a “monsoon forest” at elevations of about 4,300 feet, the study said.
One snake was “found drowned in a fish-catching cage placed by local residents in a wide stream,” researchers said. “It may have fallen into the trap the preceding night while attempting to catch fish in the cage.”
Another “had been crushed to death on the side of the road” near a stream.
“Although the discovery site of this new species is legally protected,” researchers concluded “that this species is still influenced by human activities.”
So far, the new species has only been found in Yingjiang County, the study said. The snake’s common name refers to this county located in Yunnan Province, a region in southern China that borders Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.
The new species “probably” lives across the border in Myanmar, but this is unconfirmed, researchers said. “Further research and evaluation of the population of the new species should be conducted.”
The new species was identified by its scale pattern, coloring, teeth, body proportions and other physical features, the study said. DNA analysis found the new species had at least about 10% genetic divergence from other related species.
The research team included Yu-Hao Xu, Dian-Cheng Yang, Yan-An Gong, Kai-Chen Ouyang, Shi-Yang Weng, Jun-Dong Deng, Song Huang and Li-Fang Peng.
This story was originally published July 10, 2024 at 1:05 PM with the headline "2-foot-long predator found dead in fish trap in China turns out to be new species."
