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Citation: Midtgaard, Rune. RepFocus - A Survey of the Reptiles of the World. (www.repfocus.dk).
Latest update: December 31st, 2022.


Taxonomy of the family Colubridae
Bibliography of the genus Helicops
Biodiversity of the family Colubridae








Genus
Helicops

South American Keelbacks, South American Water Snakes, Neotropical Water Snakes

Scheelaugennattern

Sydamerikanske Vandsnoge

1828 Helicops Wagler (type species: Coluber carinicaudus Wied 1824)
1843 Tachynectes Fitzinger (type species: Homalopsis leopardina Schlegel 1837)
1843 Uranops Fitzinger (type species: Coluber angulatus Linnaeus 1758)
1849 Uranops Gray [not Uranops Fitzinger 1843 (Serpentes)] (type species: Coluber angulatus Linnaeus 1758)
Contents: 21 species, of which 13 (61.9%) are endemic.
Endemism: 0% 100%
Distribution: South America.
Reported from: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil (Acre, Alagoas, Amapa, Amazonas, Bahia, Ceara, Distrito Federal, Espirito Santo, Goias, Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Para [incl. Marajo Island], Paraiba, Parana, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Norte, Rio Grande do Sul, Rondonia, Roraima, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo, Sergipe, Tocantins), Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Surinam, Trinidad & Tobago (Trinidad), Uruguay, Venezuela.

Helicops acangussu

Rondonia Keelback

Rondonia-Scheelaugennatter

Rondonia-vandsnog

2021 Helicops acangussu Moraes-da-Silva, Walterman, Citelic, Nunesa & Curcio

Distribution: Brazil (Rondonia).





Helicops angulatus

Brown-banded Keelback, Banded South American Water Snake

Braunbändige Scheelaugennatter

Brunbåndet Vandsnog

1758 Coluber angulatus Linnaeus
Helicops angulatus Wagler 1830
1802 Coluber Surinamensis Shaw (Peters & Orejas-Miranda 1970)
1824 Natrix aspera Wagler (Peters & Orejas-Miranda 1970)
1869 Helicops fumigatus Cope (Peters & Orejas-Miranda 1970)

Remarks: Previously included cyclops.
Distribution: Bolivia, Brazil (Acre, Alagoas, Amapa, Amazonas, Bahia, Ceara, Distrito Federal, Goias, Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Para [incl. Marajo Island], Paraiba, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio Grande do Norte, Rondonia, Roraima, Sergipe, Tocantins), Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Surinam, Trinidad & Tobago (Trinidad), Venezuela.


Helicops apiaka

Apiaká Keelback

Apiaká-Scheelaugennatter

Apiaká-vandsnog

2013 Helicops apiaka Kawashita-Ribeiro, Ávila & Morais

Distribution: Brazil (Mato Grosso).


Helicops boitata

Poconé Keelback

Poconé-Scheelaugennatter

Poconé-vandsnog

2019 Helicops boitata Moraes-da-Silva, Amaro, Sales Nunes, Strüssmann, Teixeira, Andrade, Sudré, Recoder, Rodrigues & Curcio

Distribution: Brazil (Mato Grosso).





Helicops carinicaudus

Keel-tailed Keelback

Kielschwanznatter

Keel-tailed Keelback

1824 Coluber carinicaudus Wied
Helicops carinicaudus Wagler 1830

Remarks: Previously included infrataeniatus. Records from Colombia (Pérez-Santos & Moreno 1988) refer to danieli (Yuki 1994). Correct publication year of the original description is 1824, not 1825 (Vanzolini & Myers 2015; Costa & Bérnils 2015). Records from Mato Grosso do Sul are erroneous (Costa & Bérnils 2018).
Distribution: Brazil (Bahia, Espirito Santo, Minas Gerais, Parana, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo).


Helicops cyclops

Bahia Keelback

Bahia-Scheelaugennatter

Bahia-vandsnog

1869 Helicops cyclops Cope

Remarks: Previously regarded as a synonym of angulatus (e.g., Peters & Orejas-Miranda 1970). Revalidated as a separate species by Murphy, Muñoz-Mérida, Auguste, Lasso-Alcalá, Rivas & Jowers (2020).
Distribution: Brazil (Bahia).





Helicops danieli

Colombian Keelback

Kolumbianische Scheelaugennatter

Colombiansk Vandsnog

1938 Helicops danieli Amaral

Distribution: Colombia.


Helicops gomesi

São Paulo Keelback

São-Paulo-Scheelaugennatter

São Paulo-vandsnog

1922 Helicops gomesi Amaral

Remarks: Correct publication year of the original description is 1922, not 1921 (Vanzolini 1977; Costa & Bérnils 2015).
Distribution: Brazil (Goias, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Parana, Sao Paulo).


Helicops hagmanni

Amazonian Keelback

Amazonas-Scheelaugennatter

Amazonas-vandsnog

1910 Helicops hagmanni Roux

Remarks: Claimed to occur also in Peru by Calderon, Ortega, Nogueira, Gagliardi, Schargel & Rivas (2019). This needs verification.
Distribution: Brazil (Acre, Amapa, Amazonas, Para [incl. Marajo Island], Rondonia), Colombia, Venezuela.


Helicops infrataeniatus

Surinam Keelback, Pampean Water Snake

Surinam-Scheelaugennatter

Surinam-vandsnog

1865 Helicops infrataeniatus Jan
Helicops carinicauda infrataeniata Griffin 1916
1865 Helicops carinicaudus gastrosticta Jan (Peters & Orejas-Miranda 1970)
1878 Helicops trivittatus Cope [not Myron trivittatus Gray 1849] (Peters & Orejas-Miranda 1970)
1885 Helicops baliogaster Cope (Peters & Orejas-Miranda 1970)
1897 Helicops pictiventris Werner (Cei 1993)

Remarks: Previously regarded as a subspecies of carinicaudus. Revalidated as a separate species by Deiques & Cechin (1991).
Distribution: Argentina, Brazil (Distrito Federal, Goias, Mato Grosso do Sul, Parana, Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo), Paraguay, Uruguay.


Helicops leopardinus

Leopard Keelback, Spotted Keelback

Leopard-Kielschwanznatter

Leopard-vandsnog

1837 Homalopsis leopardina Schlegel
Helicops leopardinus Jan 1865
1854 Helicops leprieurii Duméril, Bibron & Duméril (Peters & Orejas-Miranda 1970)

Remarks: Presence in Colombia, although previously reported (Pérez-Santos & Moreno 1988), needs confirmation.
Distribution: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil (Alagoas, Amapa, Amazonas, Bahia, Ceara, Distrito Federal, Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Para [incl. Marajo Island], Paraiba, Pernambuco, Piaui, Rio Grande do Norte, Rondonia, Sergipe, Tocantins), Ecuador, French Guiana, Paraguay, Peru, Surinam.


Helicops modestus

Brazilian Olive Keelback

Brasilianische Braune Scheelaugennatter

Brasiliansk Brun Vandsnog

1861 Helicops modestus Günther
1866 Helicops assimilis Reinhardt (Peters & Orejas-Miranda 1970)

Distribution: Brazil (Bahia, Distrito Federal, Goias, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Parana, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo).


Helicops nentur

Minas Gerais Keelback

Minas-Gerais-Scheelaugennatter

Minas Gerais-vandsnog

2016 Helicops nentur Costa, Santana, Leal, Koroiva & Garcia

Distribution: Brazil (Minas Gerais).


Helicops pastazae

Pastaza River Keelback

Pastaza-Scheelaugennatter

Pastaza-vandsnog

1934 Helicops pastazae Shreve

Distribution: Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela.


Helicops petersi

Napo Keelback

Napo-Scheelaugennatter

Napo-vandsnog

1976 Helicops petersi Rosmann

Distribution: Ecuador.


Helicops phantasma

Phantom Keelback

Fantom-Scheelaugennatter

Fantom-vandsnog

2021 Helicops phantasma Moraes-da-Silva, Amaro, Sales Nunes, Rodrigues & Curcio

Remarks:
Distribution: Brazil (Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Tocantins).





Helicops polylepis

South American Many-scaled Keelback

Vielschuppige Scheelaugennatter

Mangeskællet Vandsnog

1861 Helicops polylepis Günther
1862 Tachynectes chrysostictus Cope (Peters & Orejas-Miranda 1970)
1865 Helicops spixii Jan (Peters & Orejas-Miranda 1970)

Distribution: Bolivia, Brazil (Acre, Amapa, Amazonas, Goias, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Para [incl. Marajo Island], Rondonia, Tocantins), Colombia, Peru.


Helicops scalaris

Ladder Keelback

Treppen-Scheelaugennatter

Trappe-vandsnog

1865 Helicops scalaris Jan
1964 Helicops hogei Lancini (Rossman 2002)

Remarks: Rossman (2002) synonymized hogei with scalaris, which is followed herein, however, some authors have retained hogei as a valid species (e.g., Avila-Pires 2005; Rivas-Fuenmayor, Molina, Ugueto, Barros, Barrio-Amorós & Kok 2012; Mumaw, González & Fernández 2015).
Distribution: Colombia, Venezuela.


Helicops tapajonicus

Tapajós River Keelback

Tapajós-Scheelaugennatter

Tapajós-vandsnog

2005 Helicops tapajonicus Da Frota

Distribution: Brazil (Para).


Helicops trivittatus

Three-striped Keelback

Dreistreifige Scheelaugennatter

Trestribet Vandsnog

1849 Myron trivittatus Gray
Helicops trivittatus Boulenger 1863

Distribution: Brazil (Amapa, Goias, Maranhao, Mato Grosso, Para [incl. Marajo Island], Tocantins).


Helicops yacu

Loreto Keelback

Loreto-Scheelaugennatter

Loreto-vandsnog

1975 Helicops yacu Rossman & Dixon
Hydrops yacu [lapsus?] Henle & Ehrl 1991

Remarks: Rossman & Abe (1979) suggested that yacu might be as subspecies of pastazae. Presence in Brazil reported by Rossman & Abe (1979), but apparently overlooked by subsequent workers (e.g., Costa & Bernils 2015).
Distribution: Brazil (Acre), Peru.