Schouteden's sun snake

{{Short description|Species of snake}} {{Speciesbox | image = | status = VU | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name="iucn status 18 November 2021">{{cite iucn |author=Kusamba, C. |date=2021 |title=''Helophis schoutedeni '' |volume=2021 |article-number=e.T124311338A124311347 |url=https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/124311338/124311347 |access-date=18 November 2021}}</ref> | display_parents = 2 | parent_authority = de Witte & Laurent, 1942 | taxon = Helophis schoutedeni | authority = (de Witte, 1942) | synonyms = *''Pelophis schoutedeni'' <br />{{small|de Witte, 1942}} *''Helophis schoutedeni'' <br />{{small|— de Witte & Laurent, 1942}} | synonyms_ref = <ref name=RDB/> }}

'''Schouteden's sun snake''' ('''''Helophis schoutedeni''''') is a species of snake in the subfamily Natricinae of the family Colubridae. The species, which is monotypic in the genus ''Helophis'', is endemic to Central Africa.

==Etymology== The specific name, ''schoutedeni'', is in honor of Belgian zoologist Henri Schouteden.<ref>Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. {{ISBN|978-1-4214-0135-5}}. (''Helophis schoutedeni'', p. 237).</ref>

==Geographic range== ''H. schoutedeni'' is found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Republic of the Congo.<ref name=RDB>{{EMBL species|genus=Helophis|species=schoutedeni}}. www.reptile-database.org.</ref>

==Description== The holotype of ''H. schoutedeni'' has a total length of {{convert|540|mm|in|abbr=on}}, which includes a tail {{convert|81|mm|in|abbr=on}} long.<ref>de Witte (1922).</ref>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading== *de Witte G-F (1922). "''Description d'un ophidien nouveau récolté au Congo par le Dr Schouteden'' ". ''Revue zoologique africaine'' '''10''': 318–319. (''Pelophis'', new genus, p. 318; ''Pelophis schoutedeni'', new species, pp. 318–319). (in French). *de Witte G-F, Laurent RF (1942). "''Contribution à la faune herpétologique du Congo belge'' ". ''Revue de zoologie et de botanique africaines'' '''36''' (2): 101–115. (''Helophis'', new genus; ''Helophis schoutedeni'', new combination). (in French). *Nagy, Zoltán T.; Gvoždík, Václav; Meirte, Danny; Collet, Marcel; Pauwels, Olivier S.G. (2014). "New data on the morphology and distribution of the enigmatic Schouteden's sun snake, ''Helophis schoutedeni'' (de Witte, 1922) from the Congo Basin". ''Zootaxa'' '''3755''' (1): 96–100.

Category:Natricinae Category:Monotypic snake genera Category:Reptiles described in 1942 Category:Reptiles of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Category:Reptiles of the Republic of the Congo