Lampropeltis mexicana
For historical reasons, Frederick Gehlbach's 1967 listing of the mexicana complex has been presented. Under this classification, Gehlbach places Webb's (1961) "greeri" under L. m. mexicana , while Stejneger's (1917) L. alterna and Flury's (1950) L. blairi receive subspecific recognition under mexicana.
Lampropeltis m. alterna (Brown)
Type Locality: Davis Mountains, Texas Description: Primary red and black markings take on the form of rings, numbering more than fifteen (15), ventrals 211-229 |
Lampropreltis m. blairi (Flury)
Type Locality: "8.8 mi. west of Dryden," Texas Description: Primary red and black markings take on the form of saddles, numbering thirteen (13) or fourteen (14), ventrals 208-229 |
Lampropeltis m. mexicana (Garman)
Type Locality: Vicinity of Cuidad San Luis Potosi, SLP, Mexico Description: Primary red and black markings take the form of blotches, numbering thirty to fourty-seven (30-47), ventrals 190-200 |
Lampropeltis m. thayeri (Loveridge)
Type Locality: Miquihuana, Tamaulipas, Mexico Description: Primary red and black markings take on the form of of rings, occasionally saddles or blotches, numbering twenty-four to twenty-eight (24-28), ventrals 196-212 |
Today, greeri has been recognized as its own subspecies; Tanzer (1970) cited evidence that blairi is a polymorphic phase of alterna. Both have since been removed from mexicana and synonymized as L. alterna. However, the entire complex may need revision upon the capture of more specimens throughout Mexico.
Lampropeltis m. greeri
Type Locality: "Rancho Santa Barbara," Durango, Mexico Description: Primary red and black markings take on the form of blotches, numbering twenty-eight to thirty-six (28-36), ventrals 200-204 |
More to come...