Cerberus (snake)

Cerberus (common name dog-faced water snakes) is a small genus of snakes in the family Homalopsidae.

Geographic range and habitat

Member species of the genus Cerberus are common inhabitants of Southeast Asia's mangrove habitat and mudflats.

Etymology

The generic name, Cerberus, refers to the dog-like Greek mythological creature Cerberus.<ref>Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. Template:ISBN. (Genus Cerberus, p. 50).</ref>

Species

The following five species are recognized as being valid.<ref>Template:EMBL genus www.reptile-database.com.</ref>

• Cerberus australis Template:Small
• Cerberus dunsoni Template:Small
• Cerberus microlepis Template:Small
• Cerberus rynchops Template:Small
• Cerberus schneiderii Template:Small

Nota bene: A binomial authority in parentheses indicates that the species was originally described in a genus other than Cerberus.

Further reading

• Cuvier [G] (1829). Le règne animal distribué d'après son organisation, pour server de base a l'histoire naturelle des animaux et introduction a l'anatomie comparée. Nouvelle édition, revue et augmentée. Tome II. Les reptiles. Paris: Déterville. xv + 406 pp. (Cerberus, new genus, p. 81). (in French).

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