<onlyinclude> <!-- See Wikipedia talk:Featured lists for an explanation of this and other inclusion tags below -->
thumb|right|250px|alt=A beige-colored snake slithers on a branch, among leafy vegetation.|Cascabel dormillon or Cook's tree boa ([[Corallus ruschenbergerii), Caroni Swamp, Trinidad]]
Forty-seven species of snake have been recorded in Trinidad and Tobago, making the snake population of this area the most diverse in the Caribbean. Forty-four of these snake species are found in Trinidad and twenty-one in Tobago. Many of these species are South American, most of which are present in Venezuela.</onlyinclude> Trinidad and Tobago consists of two main islands, Trinidad and Tobago, and several smaller islands. The Bocas Islands, which lie between Trinidad and Venezuela, in the Bocas del Dragón (Dragon's Mouths), consist of Chacachacare, Monos, Huevos and Gaspar Grande. Several smaller islands lie off Trinidad, but snakes have been recorded on only one of them, Caledonia Island. Snakes have been recorded on one island off Tobago, Little Tobago. Four species are venomous: two coral snake species (Micrurus spp.), the fer-de-lance (Bothrops atrox) and the South American bushmaster (Lachesis muta). The common coral (Micrurus fulvius) is found on at least two of the Bocas Islands: Gaspar Grande and Monos. No venomous snakes inhabit Tobago.<onlyinclude>
Anomalepididae
Anomalepididae is a family of nonvenomous snakes native to Central and South America. They are similar to Typhlopidae, except that some species possess a single tooth in the lower jaw. One possible species has been recorded in Trinidad and Tobago.
{| width=100% class="wikitable"
|+Anomalepididae
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!scope="col" width=30% | Species
!scope="col" width=38% | Common name
!scope="col" width=8% | Trinidad
!scope="col" width=8% | Tobago
!scope="col" width=8% | Bocas Is.
!scope="col" width=8% | Other
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|Helminthophis cf. flavoterminatus
|Yellow-headed ground puppy; Trinidadian dawn blind snake
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Typhlopidae
Typhlopidae is a family of blind snakes found mostly in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia and the Americas. Two species have been recorded in Trinidad and Tobago.
{| width=100% class="wikitable"
|+Typhlopidae
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!scope="col" width=30% | Species
!scope="col" width=38% | Common name
!scope="col" width=8% | Trinidad
!scope="col" width=8% | Tobago
!scope="col" width=8% | Bocas Is.
!scope="col" width=8% | Other
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|Amerotyphlops brongersmianus
|Brongersma's worm snake
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|Amerotyphlops trinitatus
|Trinidad burrowing snake
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|Burrowing false coral; rouleau
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Boidae
Boidae is a family of non-venomous snakes found in America, Africa, Europe, Asia and some Pacific Islands, containing the boas. Four species have been recorded in Trinidad and Tobago.
{| width=100% class="wikitable"
|+Boidae
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!scope="col" width=30% | Species
!scope="col" width=38% | Common name
!scope="col" width=8% | Trinidad
!scope="col" width=8% | Tobago
!scope="col" width=8% | Bocas Is.
!scope="col" width=8% | Other
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|Boa constrictor constrictor
|Macajuel, boa constrictor
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Family Colubridae
Colubridae is a family of snakes comprising about two thirds of all snake species on earth. Colubrid species are found on every continent, except Antarctica. Species from three subfamilies are found in Trinidad and Tobago.
Subfamily Xenodontinae
Xenodontinae is a subfamily of snakes within the family Colubridae that includes mud snakes and New World hognose snakes.
{| width=100% class="wikitable"
|+Xenodontinae
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!scope="col" width=30% | Species
!scope="col" width=38% | Common name
!scope="col" width=8% | Trinidad
!scope="col" width=8% | Tobago
!scope="col" width=8% | Bocas Is.
!scope="col" width=8% | Other
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|Liophis cobellus cobellus
|Mangrove snake, mangrove mapepire
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|Liophis melanotus nesos
|Beh belle chemin, doctor snake
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|Siphlophis compressus
|Mapepire de fe, false coral
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|Thamnodynastes ramonriveroi
|Striped swamp snake
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Subfamily Dipsadinae
Dipsadinae is a subfamily of snakes within the family Colubridae that includes cat-eyed snakes, night snakes, and black-striped snakes.
{| width=100% class="wikitable"
|+Dipsadinae
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!scope="col" width=30% | Species
!scope="col" width=38% | Common name
!scope="col" width=8% | Trinidad
!scope="col" width=8% | Tobago
!scope="col" width=8% | Bocas Is.
!scope="col" width=8% | Other
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|Atractus fuliginosus
|Hallowell's ground snake
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|Atractus trilineatus
|Three-lined ground snake
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|Atractus cf. univittatus
|Tobago one-lined snake
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|Clelia clelia clelia
|Black cribo, mussurana
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|Snail-eating snake
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|Erythrolamprus aesculapii
|False coral
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|Erythrolamprus bizona
|False coral
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|Erythrolamprus cobella
|Mangrove snake
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|Erythrolamprus melanotus
|Black-backed snake
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|Erythrolamprus ocellatus
|Tobago false coral, red snake
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|Erythrolamprus pseudoreginae
|Tobago stream snake
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|Erythrolamprus zweifeli
|Zweifel's ground snake
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|Helicops angulatus
|Water mapepire, brown-banded water snake
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|Hydrops triangularis neglectus
|Water coral
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|Imantodes cenchoa cenchoa
|Mapepire corde violon, fiddle-string snake
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|Chironius multiventris septentrionalis
|Long-tailed machete savane
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|Chironius scurrulus
|Smooth machete savane
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|Drymarchon corais corais
|Yellow-tailed cribo
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|Grey lora
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|Mastigodryas amarali
|Amaral's tropical racer
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|Machete couesse
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|Pseustes sulphureus sulphureus
|Yellow-bellied puffing snake
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|Spilotes pullatus pullatus
|Tigre, chicken snake
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|Micrurus circinalis
|Large coral snake
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Family Viperidae
Viperidae is a family of venomous snakes found all over the world, except for Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, Madagascar, Hawaii and the Arctic Circle. All have relatively long hinged fangs that permit deep penetration and injection of venom. Two species are found in Trinidad and Tobago.
{| width=100% class="wikitable"
!width=30% | Species
!width=38% | Common name
!width=8% | Trinidad
!width=8% | Tobago
!width=8% | Bocas Is.
!width=8% | Other
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|Bothrops atrox
|Mapepire balsain, fer-de-lance
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|Lachesis muta muta
|Mapepire zanana, mapepire z'ananas, bushmaster
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See also
- Environment of Trinidad and Tobago
- List of birds of Trinidad and Tobago
- List of butterflies of Trinidad and Tobago
- List of reptiles of Trinidad and Tobago
Notes
References
All information is based on Boos (2001) unless otherwise stated.
Bibliography
External links
- Medicinal and ethnoveterinary remedies of hunters in Trinidad from BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine (BioMed Central).