Micrurus ruatanus

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

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Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	REPTILIA	SQUAMATA	ELAPIDAE

Scientific Name:

Micrurus ruatanus

Species Authority:

(Günther, 1895)

Common Name/s:

English	–	Roatan Coral Snake
Spanish	–	Coral De La Isle De Roatán, Coral Roatanense

Synonym/s:

Elaps fulvius Boulenger, 1896

Elaps ruatanus Günther, 1895

Micrurus nigrocinctus subspecies ruatanus (Günther, 1895)

Taxonomic Notes:

Micrurus pyrrhocryptus has sometimes been considered a subspecies of M. nigrocinctus (Roze 1983). However, Roze (1996) confirmed that M. pyrrhocryptus was a separate species.

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:	Critically Endangered B1ab(iii) ver 3.1
Year Published:	2010
Assessor/s:	Stafford, P.J. & McCranie, J.R.
Reviewer/s:	Böhm, M., Collen, B. & Ram, M. (Sampled Red List Index Coordinating Team)
Contributor/s:	De Silva, R., Milligan, H.T., Wearn, O.R., Wren, S., Zamin, T., Sears, J., Wilson, P., Lewis, S., Lintott, P. & Powney, G.
Justification: Micrurus ruatanus has been assessed as Critically Endangered because its extent of occurrence is less than 100 km², all individuals are in a single location, and there is a continuing decline in the extent and quality of its habitat due to the tourism trade. Further research into the population of M. ruatanus is urgently required.

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	This species is endemic to Roatan Island in the Islas de Bahia of Honduras. The size of Roatan Island is 91.3 km².
Countries:	Native: Honduras
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:	There is no population information available for this species.
Population Trend:	Unknown

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	This species inhabits tropical moist forests.
Systems:	Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	The natural habitat of Roatan Island has been severely degraded in the past due to urban and agricultural expansion. The recent increase in tourist activity on the island has contributed to further habitat loss. Roze (1996) has stated that this species is in danger of extinction, and may even already be extinct. However, this is not the case as a fatal bite occurred in 2008 (J. McCranie pers. comm. 2010).

Major Threat(s):

The natural habitat of Roatan Island has been severely degraded in the past due to urban and agricultural expansion. The recent increase in tourist activity on the island has contributed to further habitat loss. Roze (1996) has stated that this species is in danger of extinction, and may even already be extinct. However, this is not the case as a fatal bite occurred in 2008 (J. McCranie pers. comm. 2010).

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	There are no known species-specific conservation measures in place for this species. Further research should be carried out to establish the population of this species to determine if it is extinct. Urgent conservation measures, including the option of captive breeding, are required if it is found that this species is still present on Roatan Island.

Conservation Actions:

There are no known species-specific conservation measures in place for this species. Further research should be carried out to establish the population of this species to determine if it is extinct. Urgent conservation measures, including the option of captive breeding, are required if it is found that this species is still present on Roatan Island.

Citation:	Stafford, P.J. & McCranie, J.R. 2010. Micrurus ruatanus. In: IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 26 May 2013.
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