Species Morelia viridis (Schlegel, 1872)
Green Python
- Python viridis Schlegel, H. 1872. De Dierentuin van het Koninklijk Zoölogische Genootschap "Natura Artis Magistra" te Amsterdam zoölogisch geschetst door Prof H. Schlegel, met historische herinneringen van P.H. Witkampf. Amsterdam : Gebr, Van Es. [pt. 4, 54].
Type data:
Syntype(s) RMNH 4672 2 specimens, Aru (as Aroe) Ils, Indonesia. - Chondropython pulcher Sauvage, H.E. 1878. Essai sur la faune herpétologique de la Nouvelle-Guinee, suivi de la description de quelques espèces nouvelles ou peu connues. Bulletin des Sciences, par la Société Philomathique de Paris 7 2: 25-44 [37].
Type data:
Syntype(s) MNHP 5087–89, Mansinam, Irian Jaya, Indonesia; MNHP 5168–70, Mansinam, Irian Jaya, Indonesia. - Chondropython viridis shireenae Hoser, R. 2003. Five new Australian pythons. Newsletter Macarthur Herpetological Society 40: 4-9 [page number not cited; original publication not seen; information taken from website www.smuggled.com/PytRev11.htm].
Type data:
Holotype NMV D51862 (ex captive specimen), 'Cape York, Queensland'.
Taxonomic Decision for Synonymy
- Cogger, H.G., in Cogger, H.G., Cameron, E.E. & Cogger, H.M. 1983. Amphibia and Reptilia. 313 pp. in Walton, D.W. (ed.). Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Canberra : Australian Government Publishing Service Vol. 1 vi + 313 pp. [204]
- Schleip, W.D. & O'Shea, M. 2010. Annotated checklist of the recent and extinct pythons (Serpentes, Pythonidae), with notes on nomenclature, taxonomy, and distribution. ZooKeys 66(29-79)
- Natusch, D.J.D., Esquerré, D., Lyons, J.A., Hamidy, A., Lemmon, A.R. Lemmon, E.M., Riyanto, A., Keogh, S.J. & Donnellan, S. 2020. Species delimitation and systematics of the green pythons (Morelia viridis complex) of melanesia and Australia. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 142: online version
Generic Combinations
- Morelia azurea (Meyer, 1874). —
Barker, D.G., Barker, T.M., Davis, M.A. & Schuett, G.W. 2015. A review of the systematics and taxonomy of Pythonidae: an ancient serpent lineage. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 175: 1–19 [12] - Morelia viridis (Schlegel, 1872). —
Kluge, A.G. 1993. Aspidites and the phylogeny of pythonine snakes. Australian Museum Records Supplement 19: 1-77 [1] - Chondropython viridis (Schlegel, 1872). —
Cogger, H.G., Cameron, E.E. & Cogger, H.M. 1983. Amphibia and Reptilia. In, Walton, D.W. (ed.). Zoological Catalogue of Australia. Canberra : Australian Government Publishing Service Vol. 1 vi + 313 pp. [204]
Introduction
Morelia azurea was previously considered as a synonym of M. viridis, however the work of Natusch et al. (2019) demonstrated that it is a valid species restricted to NW Papua New Guinea.
Distribution
States
Queensland
Extra Distribution Information
Rainforest areas of eastern Cape York Peninsula; New Guinea.
IBRA
Qld: Cape York Peninsula (CYP)
Ecological Descriptors
Arboreal, closed forest, nocturnal, oviparous, predator.
Extra Ecological Information
General carnivore, constrictor.
General References
Groombridge, B.C. 1979. Variations in morphology of the superficial palate of henophidian snakes and some possible systematic implications. Journal of Natural History 13: 447-475 (morphology)
McDowell, S.B. 1975. A catalogue of the snakes of New Guinea and the Solomons, with special reference to those in the Bernice P. Bishop Museum. Part II. Anilioidea and Pythoninae. Journal of Herpetology 9: 1-79 (taxonomy)
Murphy, J.B., Carpenter, C.C. & Gillingham, J.C. 1978. Caudal luring in the green tree python, Chondropython viridis (Reptilia, Serpentes, Boidae). Journal of Herpetology 12: 117-119 (behaviour)
Natusch, D.J.D., Esquerré, D., Lyons, J.A., Hamidy, A., Lemmon, A.R. Lemmon, E.M., Riyanto, A., Keogh, S.J. & Donnellan, S. 2020. Species delimitation and systematics of the green pythons (Morelia viridis complex) of melanesia and Australia. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 142: online version
Common Name References
CAVS 2006. Census of Australian Vertebrate Species. Australian Biological Resources Study. (Green Python)
History of changes
| Published | As part of group | Action Date | Action Type | Compiler(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 06-Sep-2017 | PYTHONIDAE Fitzinger, 1826 | 05-Mar-2021 | MODIFIED | |
| 07-Feb-2024 | 22-Aug-2013 | MODIFIED | ||
| 08-Mar-2011 | 08-Mar-2011 | MODIFIED | ||
| 12-Feb-2010 | (import) |