Lamprophiinae is a subfamily of lamprophiid snakes, a large group of mostly African snakes, most of which were formerly classified as colubrids but which we now know are actually more closely related to elapids.
Lamprophiine snakes are small to medium-sized snakes, several of which use constriction to subdue their prey. In general we know little about their ecology in the wild.
The best-known lamprophiines are probably the genera Boaedon and Lamprophis, commonly known as "house snakes". Several species are popular in the pet trade.
Chamaelycus and Dendrolycus are the most poorly known genera.
Genera
There are currently 78 species in 15 genera placed in Lamprophiinae.
- Alopecion <small>Duméril, 1853</small> - spotted house snake
- Boaedon <small>A.M.C. Duméril, Bibron & A.H.A. Duméril, 1854</small> (brown house snakes)
- Bothrolycus <small>Günther, 1874</small> (Günther's black snake)
- Bothrophthalmus <small>W. Peters, 1863</small> (red-black striped snakes)
- Chamaelycus <small>Boulenger, 1919</small> (African banded snakes)
- Dendrolycus <small>, 1956</small> (Cameroon rainforest snake)
- Gonionotophis <small>Boulenger, 1893</small> (African File Snakes; including the former genus Mehelya)
- Gracililima <small>Broadley, Tolley, Conradie, Wishart, Trape, Burger, Kusamba, Zassi-Boulou & Greenbaum, 2018</small> (black file snake)
- Hormonotus <small>Hallowell, 1857</small> (yellow forest snake)
- Inyoka <small>Kelly, , , Barker & Villet, 2011</small> (Swazi rock snake)
- Lamprophis <small>Fitzinger, 1843</small> (dwarf house snakes)
- Limaformosa <small>Broadley, Tolley, Conradie, Wishart, Trape, Burger, Kusamba, Zassi-Boulou, & Greenbaum, 2018</small>(African file snakes; including the former genus Mehelya)
- Lycodonomorphus <small>Fitzinger, 1843</small> (African water snakes)
- Lycophidion <small>Fitzinger, 1843</small> (African wolf snakes)
- Pseudoboodon <small>Peracca, 1897</small> (Ethiopian mountain snakes)
References