The embryonic development of the E gyptian cobra N aja h. haje ( S quamata: S erpentes: E lapidae)
2013; Wiley; Volume: 95; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1111/azo.12043
ISSN0001-7272
AutoresEraqi R. Khannoon, Susan E. Evans,
Tópico(s)Turtle Biology and Conservation
ResumoAbstract The E gyptian cobra, N aja h. haje , is the largest of the A frican cobras and is a member of a successful and medically important species complex found throughout A frica, north and south of the S ahara, as well as across the A rabian P eninsula to O man. Although its phylogenetic position and venom characteristics have been well studied, its development has not. Here, we present a normal staging table for N . h. haje , based on external features. Comparison with firstly the A sian monocled cobra, N aja kaouthia , and then with the small number of other oviparous snake species, allowed us to examine whether differences between two species in the same genus were of the same type and magnitude as those between unrelated genera. In fact, at least with respect to external features, we found a similar level of disparity. N . h. haje embryos lagged behind those of N . kaouthia in body and head scale development, size in ovo and hatchling length, despite having a slightly shorter incubation period and a somewhat larger adult size. Some of these differences may have been the result of differing incubation temperatures. Nonetheless, there does appear to be a broadly conserved pattern of in ovo development in at least macrostomatan snakes.
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