Geophis sanniolus

Geophis sanniolus, commonly known as the pygmy snail-eating snake or the pygmy snail sucker, is a species of small snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to Central America and southeastern Mexico.

Geophis sanniolus
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Colubridae
Genus:	Geophis
Species:	G. sanniolus
Binomial name
Geophis sanniolus (Cope, 1866)
Synonyms[2]
Mesopeltis sanniolus Cope, 1866 Leptognathus sanniola — Bocourt, 1908 Sibynomorphus sanniola — Schmidt & Andrews, 1936 Sibon sanniolus — Liner, 1994 Sibon sanniola — Lee, 2000 Sibon sanniolus — Wallach, 2014

Geographic range

G. sanniolus is found in Belize, Guatemala, and the Mexican states of Campeche, Quintana Roo, and Yucatán.^[1][2][3]

Habitat

Geophis sanniolus is a relatively common snake that occurs in tropical semi-deciduous forest and thorn forest, and also in degraded forest.^[1]

Reproduction

G. sanniolus reaches sexual maturity in eight months and produces a single clutch per year.^[4]

Subspecies

Two subspecies are recognized as being valid, including the nominotypical subspecies.^[2]

• Geophis sanniolus neilli Henderson, Hoevers & Wilson, 1977
• Geophis sanniolus sanniolus (Cope, 1866)

Nota bene: A trinomial authority or a binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies or species was originally described in a genus other than Geophis.

Etymology

The subspecific name, neilli, is in honor of American herpetologist Wilfred T. Neill.^[5]