Liophis ornatus (St Lucia Racer)

[sebbe67]

extinct anole species that were endemic to St Lucia.

[Deleted]

Hi !

This is a snake and it can still be found on Maria Island with a population of about 100 individulas.

Bye Alex

[sebbe67]

its not a snake, I have found this name on the Caribbean anole specilaist group website

[Melanie]

Hi Sebbe,

would you please give a source because I think this website has confused something. Liophis ornatus is normally the Latin name of the St. Lucia Racer. (if you don't believe that type "Liophis ornatus" at Google).

[Deleted]

Not all what can be found in the internet is allways true ! Sometimes theese people who made such sites have no idea of what they doing !

For example:

Here is a german site which identifies a chukar (Alectoris chukar) as a Nene (Branta sandwicensis), they mistake a hen for a goose.

www.ramb.ethz.ch/sabbatical2002/2002-05-15/

[Deleted]

Here is another example for a very bad site, sorry but it is !

www.ornithology.com/extinct.html

All names are whritten without any sence, extinct and endangered birds together, many many names are errors or whritten wrong ! This site cannot be used for what ever, it is s h i t, nothing else.

[Peter]

It is indeed a snake!
animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/classification/Liophis_ornatus.html#Liophis%20ornatus

And classified as Endangered by the IUCN Red List, not extinct!
www.redlist.org/search/details.php?species=12080

Sebbe67, what is the link of the website you mention?

[another specialist]

Until fairly recently, the couresse liophis (dromicus) ornatus was held to be the world's rarest species of snake.Indeed, for a number of years it was feared to be extinct. Limited to the larger of two tiny specks of land called Maria Islands, just offshore from the west indian island of st lucia, this non-poisonous species was rediscovered in april 1984 by Dr David Corke, an ecology lecturer at the north east london polytechnic, who was visiting the marias in search of this secretive serpent and the maria islands ground lizard cnemidophorus vanzoi.
As it happened, Corke did not have to do very much to rediscover the couresse - one morning, a surprisingly bold specimen glided through a forest's leaf litter directly towards him. Startled but prepared, he prompty captured it, measured, weighed, and photographed it, and then called in some other scientists on the island to verify the record - after which he released his welcome visitor back into the forest.........

The species has been rediscovered needs to be moved to correct category.........

[Melanie]

Here is a photo of the St. Lucia Racer




St Lucia racer - rarest snake in the world
(Guiness Book of Records). [David Corke]


Here an excerpt from the following page

www.ahs.org.au/news.php?name=rare.txt

Like the lizard the St Lucia racer is just holding out on Maria major. As the Guinness Book of Records reports: "Following a successful conservation campaign and captive breeding of the keel-scaled boa of Round Island [by JWPT!], its place as the world's rarest snake has been taken by the St Lucia racer or Couresse, Liophus ornatus."

It feeds mainly on tree lizards and young ground lizards. A fascinating ecological situation with the world's rarest snake feeding on the world's rarest ground lizard! There is virtually nothing known about this snake, and to start with, it is a priority to learn as much as we can about it in the wild. Reptile staff from JWPT are to commence studies this year.

After an initial approach by wildlife conservation biologist Dr David Corke, who estimated that the racer's total population is less than 100, the Trust is now offering its support to Mr Brian James, Chief Forest and Lands Officer in St Lucia.

[Melanie]

Good news about the St. Lucia Racer

www.miamiherald.com/2012/07/10/2889963/scientists-to-protect-rare-snake.html#storylink=cpy
news.discovery.com/earth/snake-returns-from-extinction-120713.html
www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/10/st-lucia-racer-rarest-snake_n_1663380.html

[surroundx]

Williams, Robert J., Ross, Toby, N., Morton, Matthew N., Daltry, Jennifer C. and Isidore, Lenn. (2016). Update on the natural history and conservation status of the Saint Lucia racer, Erythrolamprus ornatus Garman, 1887 (Squamata: Dipsadidae). Herpetology Notes 9: 157-162.