Contia (snake)

Contia is a small genus of small snakes in the subfamily Dipsadinae of the family Colubridae. The genus is native to western North America.

Etymology The generic name, Contia, is in honor of American entomologist John Lawrence LeConte.Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . (Genus Contia, p. 154).

Species There are two species which are recognized as being valid. Image Scientific name Common name DistributionContia longicaudae forest sharp-tailed snakenorthern California and southern OregonContia tenuis sharp-tailed snake California, Oregon, and Washington, as well as British Columbia, Canada: Southern Vancouver Island, British Columbia around Victoria, British Columbia, and Pemberton, British Columbia

References

Further reading Baird SF, Girard CF (1853). Catalogue of North American Reptiles in the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution. Part I.—Serpents. Washington, District of Columbia: Smithsonian Institution. xvi + 172 pp. (Contia, new genus, p. 110).