Xenophidion schaeferi

Xenophidion schaeferi, also known commonly as the Malayan spinejaw snake^[2] or Schäfer's spiny-jawed snake,^[1] is a species of snake in the monotypic family Xenophidiidae.^[2] The species is endemic to Malaysia.

Xenophidion schaeferi
Conservation status
Data Deficient  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Xenophidiidae
Genus:	Xenophidion
Species:	X. schaeferi
Binomial name
Xenophidion schaeferi R. Günther & Manthey, 1995

Etymology

The specific name, schaeferi is in honor of German herpetologist Christian Schäfer who collected the holotype.^[3]

Geographic range

X. schaeferi is found in the Malaysian state of Selangor, in western Peninsular Malaysia.^[1][2]

Habitat

The preferred natural habitat of X. schaeferi is forest.^[1]

Reproduction

X. schaeferi is oviparous.^[2]

DNA sequence divergence of sibling species

In the genus Xenophidion, there is one sister species, X. acanthognathus. Molecular analyses of a new specimen of X. acanthognathus reveal that it only differs from the holotype of X. schaeferi by a minimum sequence divergence of 0.27%.^[4]