Mixcoatlus is a small genus of pit vipers endemic to Mexico. The genus was described in 2011.[1]

Mixcoatlus
Mixcoatlus melanurus
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Viperidae
Subfamily: Crotalinae
Genus: Mixcoatlus
Jadin, Smith, and Campbell, 2011[1]
Type species
Agkistrodon browni
Shreve, 1938
Diversity
3 species (see text)

The name Mixcoatlus is derived from the Nahuatl word Mixcoatl or "cloud serpent", a deity of the Aztec and several other Mesoamerican civilizations. This name also refers to the geographic restriction of this clade to elevations above 2,000 meters.[1]

Species

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There are three species:[1][2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Jadin, R.C.; Smith, E.N.; Campbell, J. (2011). "Unraveling a tangle of Mexican serpents: a systematic revision of highland pitvipers". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 163 (3): 951. doi:10.1111/j.1096-3642.2011.00748.x.
  2. ^ Mixcoatlus at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 8 December 2014.