Telescopus hoogstraali

Telescopus hoogstraali
Conservation status
	; Endangered (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Suborder:	Serpentes
Family:	Colubridae
Genus:	Telescopus
Species:	T. hoogstraali
Binomial name
	Telescopus hoogstraali; Schmidt & Marx, 1956
Synonyms
	Telescopus hoogstraali ; Schmidt & Marx, 1956; Telescopus fallax hoogstraali ; — , 1977; Telescopus hoogstraali ; — & , 2006; Telescopus hoogstraali ; — Wallach et al., 2014;

Telescopus hoogstraali, common names of which include Hoogstraal's cat snake and the Sinai cat snake,^[1] is an endangered species of snake in the family Colubridae. The species is endemic to the Middle East.

Etymology[]

The specific name, hoogstraali, is in honor of American entomologist and parasitologist Harry Hoogstraal.^[4]

Description[]

T. hoogstraali has a black-coloured neck and head. Its eyes are small with vertical, cat-like pupils. The snake's underbelly is grey and is covered with black spots.^[5]

Geographic range[]

T. hoogstraali is found around the Sinai region, in Egypt and Israel, as well as Jordan.

In Egypt, it is found in and Gebel Maghara of northern Sinai Peninsula, while in Israel it can be found only in Negev Desert. It is also known from one city in Jordan, Petra.^[1]

Habitat[]

T. hoogstraali can be found at an elevation of 1,500 metres (4,900 ft) in natural habitats such as subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland, rocky areas, and hot deserts.^[1]

Conservation status[]

T. hoogstraali is threatened by habitat loss and distribution.^[1]

References[]

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Disi, M.; A.M.; Werner, Y.; El Din, S.B. (2006). "Telescopus hoogstraali". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2006: e.T61582A12498578. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2006.RLTS.T61582A12498578.en. Retrieved 13 November 2021.
^ "Telescopus hoogstraali ". The Reptile Database. www.reptile-database.org.
^ Zinner, Hermann (1977). "The Status of Telescopus hoogstraali Schmidt & Marx 1956 and the Telescopus fallax Fleischmann 1831 Complex (Reptilia, Serpentes, Colubridae)". Journal of Herpetology 11 (2): 207-212. (Telescopus fallax hoogstraali, new combination).
^ Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. ISBN 978-1-4214-0135-5. (Telescopus hoogstraali, p. 126).
^ Amr ZS, Disi AM (2011). "Systematics, distribution and ecology of the snakes of Jordan". Vertebrate Zoology 61 (2): 179–266.