Cerberus rynchops

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Dog-faced Water Snake

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Colubridae
Genus:	Cerberus
Species:	C. rynchops

Binomial name

Cerberus rynchops
(Schneider, 1799)

New Guinea bockadam or Dog-faced Water Snake Cerberus rynchops is a species of snake. This is a saltwater tolerant species found in Australia (North Territory, Queensland, West Australia), New Guinea, Indonesia (Ambon, Babi, Bacan = Batjan, Bali, Bangka, Buru, Butung, Dolak, Enggano, Flores, Goram, Halmahera, Irian Jaya, Java, Kalimantan, Lombok, Mentawai Archipelago, Nako, Natuna Archipelago, Nias, Riau Archipelago, Roti, Sangihe Archipelago, Saparua, Seram, Simeulue, Singapore, Sulawesi, Sula Archipelago, Sumatra, Sumba, Sumbawa, Talaud Archipelago, Ternate, Timor, We, Wetar); Bangladesh, Cambodia, India (including Andaman and Nicobar Islands), Malaysia (Malaya and East Malaysia, incl. Pulau Tioman), Burma (Myanmar), Philippine Islands (including Palawan, Panay, Luzon); Singapore; Sri Lanka; Thailand and Vietnam. Race novaeguinea is found in Indonesia (Irian Jaya). Type locality: "Ganjam" (Orissa State, SE India)

C. rynchops is commonly found in mangroves: mudflats, streams, ponds, tidal pools, on algae patches, and has even been found burrowing into the mud. C. rynchops is a mildly venomous, nocturnal aquatic snake, which feeds mainly on fish.

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[edit] References

Boulenger, George A. 1890 The Fauna of British India, Including Ceylon and Burma. Reptilia and Batrachia. Taylor & Francis, London, xviii, 541 pp.
Karns,D.R.; O'Bannon,A.; Voris,H.K. & Weigt,L.A. 2000 Biogeographical implications of mitochondrial DNA variation in the Bockadam snake (Cerberus rynchops, Serpentes, Homalopsinae) in Southeast Asia. J. Biogeography 27: 391-402
Schneider, J. G. 1799 Historiae Amphibiorum narturalis et literariae. Fasciculus primus, continens Ranas. Calamitas, Bufones, Salamandras et Hydros. Jena, 266 S.