The Colubrinae are a
subfamily of the family
Colubridae of snakes. It includes numerous
genera, and although
taxonomic sources often disagree on the exact number, The Reptile Database lists 717 species in 92 genera as of September 2019.[2] It is the second largest subfamily of colubrids, after
Dipsadinae.[2] Many of the most commonly known snakes are members of this subfamily, including
rat snakes,
king snakes,
milk snakes,
vine snakes, and
indigo snakes.[2]
Colubrine snakes are distributed worldwide, with the highest diversity in North America, Asia, northern Africa, and the Middle East. There are relatively few species of colubrine snakes in Europe, South America, Australia, and southern Africa, and none in Madagascar, the Caribbean, or the Pacific Islands.[2][3][4]
Within Colubrinae, genera and species seem to make up five distinct radiations[7] that are to varying degrees broadly similar in terms of ecology and geographic distribution, although increased sampling is needed to determine whether all species currently placed in Colubrinae fit into one of these groups. These correspond roughly to the historically recognized
tribe names Sonorini, Colubrini, Boigini/Lycodontini, Dispholidini, and
Lampropeltini.
Coluber is the type genus of both Colubrinae and
Colubridae and the basis for the name
Colubroidea, and it is one of only three snake genera named by
Carl Linnaeus still in use for a snake today.[8][9]
Genera
A group of 4 genera historically placed in Colubrinae have recently been called a separate subfamily,
Ahaetullinae, in a few analyses.[10] These are Ahaetulla Link, 1807, Chrysopelea Boie, 1827, Dendrelaphis Boulenger, 1890, and Dryophiops Boulenger, 1896.
^
abcdUetz, Peter.
"Colubrinae". The Reptile Database. Retrieved 18 September 2019.
^Wallach, V. W.; Williams, K. L.; Boundy, J. (2014). Snakes of the World: A Catalogue of Living and Extinct Species. Boca Raton, Florida, USA: CRC Press.
^Pough, F. H.; Andrews, R. M.; Crump, M. L.; Savitzky, A. H.; Wells, K. D.; Brandley, M. C. (2016). Herpetology (4th ed.). Sunderland, Massachusetts, USA: Sinauer Associates, Inc.
^Fry, B. G.; Casewell, N. R.; Wüster, W.; Vidal, N.; Young, B.; Jackson, T. N. (2012). "The structural and functional diversification of the Toxicofera reptile venom system". Toxicon. 60 (4): 434–448.
doi:
10.1016/j.toxicon.2012.02.013.
PMID22446061.