GUATEMALAN BULL SNAKE Pituophis lineaticollis gibsoni

Gibson's Bull Snake, Mazacuata, Gibson Gopher Snake, or Mazacuata de Montana

Below is my young male Gibson Bull snake from 2013. He's a true jewel!

His parents are from wild collected stock of Antigua, Guatemala.

Digital image by Patrick Houston Briggs

Below is my young female Gibson bull snake year 2013. She's also a jewel!

Notice that the 3rd pair of vertebral markings has the 1st bridge on her. You can also see that she's been rubbing her nose a bit.

Digital image by Patrick Houston Briggs

Below is a closeup digital image of my young male "gibsoni" viewing the anterior body from above. Notice the paired markings.

Digital Image by Patrick Houston Briggs 2013

Below is another neonate "gibsoni" female from 2014.

Digital Image By Patrick H. Briggs

The "gibsoni" below is my 2014 neonate male I purchased from John Ginter who appears to be the first to successfully breed these in the U.S.

Unlike other colubrids, "gibsoni" are placed together in the fall season, laying before spring, with a long egg incubation period of more than 3 months.

Image By Pat Briggs

Here's an email from Pancho Gutiérrez to me with a video of a wild Gibson's bull snake from a ranch in Guatemala.

Hola Patricio,

Hi Patrick,

Lamento la tardanza, pero tuve serios problemas con mi PC, tuve que comprar una nueva y hasta ahora estoy poniendome al día con mis correos...

Sorry for how late it's been, but I had some serious problems with my PC. I had to buy a new one and up until now I've been at the post office everyday.

Adjunto el video que tomé en mi casa.

Along with this (email) is the video that I took at home.

Esto es en el cantón Tierra Colorada Baja, Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. Estamos a +- 2,300msnm. Es un bosque pequeño, rodeado de granjas y sembradillos ,y

This area is in a region of lower red lands of Quetzaltenango Guatemala. We are at +- 2,300 mtrs above s.l. elevation. It's a small woodland area surrounded by farms and little

tristemente, minas. En el bosque hay mayoritariamente pinos, un poco de cipres y algunos eucaliptos. Hay ardillas, libre, mofeta, tacuazin (zarigueya), gato de monte y

fields, and unfortunately, mines. In the forest, there are mainly pines, a few cypress, and some eucaliptus. There are squirrels, rabbits, skunks, possums, cougars, and many birds.

muchas aves. Principalmente pájaro carpintero, paloma criolla, coronado, colibrí y una pareja de tecolotes.

Mostly woodpeckers, native doves, crowned hummingbirds, and a pair of owls.

Quisiera poder proteger y fomentar la reproducción de esta especie en este hábitat, por lo que te agradezco cualquier sugerencia al respecto

I'd like to be able to protect and promote the reproduction of this species in this habitat for which I thank you for whatever suggestion regarding it you may have.

En el video se aprecia bien la serpiente, hay mucho movimiento de la cámara, pero se debe a que me estaban temblando la manos (adrenalina por el susto). Noté que

In the video, the snake can be well apreciated, there is a lot of camera movement, but that's because my hands were shaking (adrenalin of fear). Notice that the tail is shaking rapidly

sacude la cola velozmente y hace un ruido como de cascabel al pegarse a si misma sobre el cuerpo...

and making sounds much like a rattler when it hits itself against its own body...

Here's a video of a wild Guatemalan Bull Snake from Quetzaltenango, Guatemala sent to me from Pancho from his farm house where he lives.

Disfruta!

I just identified a pituophis Lineaticollis gibsoni in my farm. I have a video, if you are interested ley me Know and Ill send it to you.
I live in Guatemala, in Quetzaltenango . 2,300 meters above sea level.

Pancho

Enviado desde mi iPhone

Pancho Gutiérrez Quetzaltenango Guatemala

As early researchers were becoming familiar with the ophidian form of Pituophis lineaticollis gibsoni, they eventually lumped it into the same species as deppei and considered it a subspecies known as Pituophis deppei gibsoni with Pituophis deppei lineaticollis, Pituophis deppei deppei, and Pituophis deppei jani, and sometimes known by other taxonomical names depending on the authority or time period. This whole group was called the Middle-American snake for a while until the lineaticollis races were separated from the deppei races.

See this site: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/31570/31570-h/31570-h.htm

HISTORICAL REVIEW from William Duellman's paper in 1960.

A Taxonomic Study of the Middle-American Snake, Pituophis deppei

Duméril (1853: 453) described Elaphis deppei from a specimen in the Leiden Museum from "Mexico." This specimen, according to the type description, has 233 ventrals and 67 caudals. In 1863 Jan described Pituophis deppei var. pholidostictus, also with "Mexico" as the type locality. Subsequent authors (see synonymy of P. deppei deppei in Stull, 1940: 25) have treated pholidostictus as a synonym of deppei. Smith and Taylor (1950: 334) restricted the type localities of deppei and pholidostictus to San Juan Teotihuacán, México. Cope (1860: 369) described Arizona jani on the basis of a specimen in the United States National Museum from Buena Vista, Coahuila. Stull (1932: 2, 1940: 42), Smith (1944: 145) and Smith and Taylor (1945: 107) considered jani as a northern subspecies of Pituophis deppei. Arizona lineaticollis was described by Cope (1861: 300); the type, which originally was in the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia and is now lost, was said to have come from Jalapa, Veracruz. This locality probably is in error. Smith (1943: 460) placed lineaticollis as a southern subspecies of deppei. Schmidt and Shannon (1947: 79) described Pituophis deppei brevilineata on the basis of five specimens from Tancítaro, Michoacán, and Stuart (1954: 172) described Pituophis deppei gibsoni from seven specimens from Departamento Chimaltenango, Guatemala. Thus, at present five subspecies of Pituophis deppei are recognized.(Of course, this has changed since the writing of this paper long ago.) For references, see the site above.

Diagnosis (gibsoni): This race is characterized by paired, elongated, pale-centered, paravertebral spots on the anterior part of the body. Posterior to the paired spots are 22 to 27 dorsal body-blotches; these and the lateral intercalary spots have pale centers. There are 234 to 246 ventrals and 57 to 65 caudals [DUELLMAN 1960].

Distribution Figure 1

An importantant range reference, click to the right: http://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Pituophis&species=lineaticollis

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/31570/31570-h/31570-h.htm
Click this image to the right from the site above of a first gibsoni record: http://www.gutenberg.org/files/31570/31570-h/images/i004_fig2.jpg

Click below for another RANGE MAP from IUCN red list

http://maps.iucnredlist.org/map.html?id=63872

Pituophis lineaticollis gibsoni Upper Head Closeup Study below

Photo by Patrick H. Briggs

One of the Cope's or Middle-American Pituophis races,

GUATEMALAN BULL SNAKE (Stuart, 1954)

(La Serpiente Toro de Guatemala)

Pituophis lineaticollis gibsoni

By Patrick Houston Briggs

The Guatemalan or Gibson Bull Snake is named after Colvin Gibson, the collector of the first or "holotype" specimen. Type.--UMMZ 107060 was collected from near Yepocapa, Dpto. Chimaltenango, Guatemala; at 1430 meters in 1927. The native Guatemalans used to call it the "Mazacuata de Tierra Fria" which means "large snake of cold lands". It is rarely seen in common literature or photographed. This lesser-known race is indigenous to moderate and intermediate elevations of the Pacific versant of western Guatemala and from the Caribbean versant of the Sierra de los Cuchumantanes or the adjacent highlands region near San Cristobal, Chiapas, Mexico(Duellman 1960). Although they are reported to eat the local rodents, birds and their eggs, as young snakes, they may also feed on lizards. Very little is known regarding reproduction of gibsoni, but apparently, there are a few entusiasts having obtained permits, have brought some of these reptiles to the United States in Los Angeles, California and Arizona to attempt breeding this rare ophidian jewl. Carl Franklin, a biologist from Texas, also a researcher, has produced eggs from animals that he has worked with. John Ginter, a researcher and collector has produced eggs in 2013 after breeding in the winter instead of the spring as is common for most Pituophis forms. I understand Tom Moisi and his friends have also produced young in 2013. This subspecies also has darker or similar light brown ground coloration as many of the nominal lineaticollis individuals, with paired black, elongate PARAVERTEBRAL SPOTS or markings on the anterior and mid-region of the body numbering 22-27, and with PALE-CENTERS found within the upper dark twin touching spots at the mid-body region and within the lateral intercalary spots on each side. (The nominal P. l. lineaticollis is slightly different in this aspect among others, because it usually sports UNBROKEN or very few divisions or splits through the STRIPES anteriorly). This species is also one of the few Pituophis that have 2 prefrontal scales instead of the trademark 4. Guatemalan Bull Snakes number 234-246 ventrals and 57-65 caudals.

Type.?University of Michigan Museum of Zoology UMMZ No. 107060 [gibsoni] Holotype: ANSP 3548; Mexico

Below is a a digital image study of a young male Gibson's bull snake body viewed from above.

This animal came from parents of Antigua, Guatemala. Note the paired markings and the 1st bridge on the 5th pair.

Image by Patrick Houston Briggs 2013

Scutelation

Mid-body Scales 27 Supralabials 8-9

Ventrals 234-246 Infralabials 11-13

Caudals 57-65 Preoculars 1

Anal entire Postoculars 2-3

Prefrontals 2

Photo by Patrick Houston Briggs Courtesy Thomas Moisi

(Upper Pituophis l. lineaticollis) (Lower Pituophis l. gibsoni)

Abajo se ve Jacob Diaz, El cazador de culebras con

un adulto Pituophis lineaticollis gibsoni

http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/photo.php?id=233704

http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/photo.php?id=233710

http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/photo.php?id=233709

http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/photo.php?id=261141

Other specimen sample numbers studied for genetic information include AF138767; CJF 1500 Guatemala: Departamento Zacapa, Sierra de las Minas &

AF141097; CJF 1501; Guatemala: Departemento Zacapa, Sierra de las Minas (Javier A. Rodriguez-Robles & Jose M. De Jesus-Escobar)

http://www.fororeptiles.org/foros/showthread.php?41206-ayuda-¡¡¡identificacion¡¡¡¡/page2&p=551099

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/31570/31570-h/31570-h.htm

See this site image of gibsoni: http://www.travellog.com/guatemala/ikbolay/pituophislineatico.html

Carl Franklin produced 9 eggs from gibsoni in 2003. See message: http://forum.kingsnake.com/bull/messages/14913.html

John Ginter has produced gibsoni eggs in 2013 per personal communication cell phone to me. They hatched in April. I bought a pair.

Collector-Researcher John Ginter also has produced eggs for gibsoni per communiction by phone to Pat Briggs in April 2013.

See the forum on the kingsnake.com site about the gibsoni below: http://forums.kingsnake.com/view.php?id=2011085,2011085

See also REPTILES magazine April 2001 issue, Pituophis Parade: The Bull, Gopher & Pine Snakes, p. 48-73 By Patrick Briggs

Guatamalan Bull Snake or Mazacuata

Photo negative scan by Patrick Briggs

John Ginter says:

After 7 years of effort we were finally able to produce Gibson's gopher snakes! They spent 93 days in the egg but finally emerged a few weeks ago (April, 2013) and are already eating rat pinkies. They are offspring of legally obtained Antigua Guatemala locality founders. Much thanks to my good friend Danny for all his help in this accomplishment.

Digital Image by Patrick Houston Briggs

See one of the mothers of hatchlings born 2013 Pituophis lineaticollis lineaticollis: http://forums.kingsnake.com/view.php?id=2011085,2011085

Check out this beautiful head study by Chris Harris by clicking the red for the site below:

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://gallery.pethobbyist.com/data/5263pituophis_lineaticollis_3.jpg&imgrefurl=http://forums.kingsnake.com/forum.php%3Fcatid%3D69&usg=__d52HmwvIWlbQ1Px0JJQKCMDBB2U=&h=441&w=659&sz=74&hl=en&start=1&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=-frYwcsN8QcaMM:&tbnh=92&tbnw=138&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dawesome%2Bpituophis%26ndsp%3D20%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DN%26um%3D1

Check out fauna classified below advertised:

2013 Hatchling Pituophis l. gibsoni

Never before available in the USA or Europe. We are offering 2.2 Gibson's Guatemalan pine snakes for sale. These hatchlings are the offspring of unrelated, legally imported Antigua Guatemala locality parents and are established and feeding on rat pinks. We are asking $1,000 each shipped within the continental US and may be able to provide delivery to the Hamm DE show.

Here's another head study image by Carl Franklin, Click http://www.kingsnake.com/pituophis/images/Gibsoni.jpg

Pituophis lineaticollis gibsoni (Rarely Photographed)

Photo by Patrick Houston Briggs Courtesy Thomas Moisi

( Specimen Below Collected From Guatemala City)

Photo by Patrick Houston Briggs Courtesy Thomas Moisi

(Below Note The Paravertebral Spots With Light Centers Toward The Mid-Body)

Photo by Patrick Houston Briggs Courtesy Thomas Moisi

Closeup scale study of Pituophis lineaticollis gibsoni from Guatemala City.

Notice the pairs of apical pits visible near the tips of each light scale.

Guatamala Bull Snake from Guatamala City

Photo negative scan by Patrick H. Briggs Courtesy Thomas Moisi

Side Head Study

Pituophis lineaticollis gibsoni

A Taxonomic Study of the Middle American Snake, Pituophis deppei

by

Duellman, William E.

Pituophis lineaticollis gibsoni Stuart, new combination
Pituophis deppei gibsoni Stuart, Proc. Biol. Soc. Washington, vol. 67, p. 172, August 5, 1954.
Type.—UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN MUSEUM OF ZOOLOGY NO. 107060, OBTAINED BY COLVIN GIBSON. TYPE LOCALITY: YEPOCAPA,
Chimaltenango, Guatemala.
Diagnosis.—THIS RACE IS CHARACTERIZED BY PAIRED, ELONGATED, PALE-CENTERED, PARAVERTEBRAL SPOTS ON THE ANTERIOR PART OF
THE BODY. POSTERIOR TO THE PAIRED SPOTS ARE 22 TO 27 DORSAL BODY-BLOTCHES; THESE AND THE LATERAL INTERCALARY SPOTS HAVE
pale centers. There are 234 to 246 ventrals and 57 to 65 caudals.
Variation.—THE FEW SPECIMENS THAT ARE AVAILABLE FROM A SMALL GEOGRAPHIC AREA DO NOT PERMIT A DISCUSSION OF GEOGRAPHIC
VARIATION AT THIS TIME. ALL OF THE SPECIMENS HAVE THE PAIRED PARAVERTEBRAL SPOTS AND BLOTCHES WITH LIGHT CENTERS. IN THIS
RESPECT THE POPULATION OF lineaticollis EAST OF THE ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC IS NOTICEABLY DIFFERENT FROM THE NOMINAL
SUBSPECIES IN THE MEXICAN HIGHLANDS. SMITH AND TAYLOR (1945: 108) LISTED A SPECIMEN FROM SAN CRISTOBAL, CHIAPAS. I
HAVE NOT SEEN THIS SPECIMEN AND SO DO NOT KNOW TO WHICH SUBSPECIES IT BELONGS. ON GEOGRAPHICAL GROUNDS IT PROBABLY IS
gibsoni.
Distribution.—GUATEMALAN HIGHLANDS AND PROBABLY HIGHLANDS OF CHIAPAS. ASIDE FROM THE SPECIMENS EXAMINED, TWO
OTHERS ARE KNOWN—ONE FROM VOLCÁN AGUA, SACATEPEQUEZ (SLEVIN, 1939: 400), AND ONE FROM DUEÑAS, SACATEPEQUEZ
(Boulenger, 1894: 65); these localities are not shown in figure 1.
Specimens examined.—EIGHT, AS FOLLOWS: GUATEMALA: Chimaltenango: CHICHAVAC, CNHM 1927; FINCA EL TESORO, 3 KM.
SE OF ACATENANGO, UMMZ 107062-3; FINCA RECREO, 4.5 KM. SW OF YEPOCAPA, UMMZ 107381; RÍO LOS POSITOS, 5.5 KM.
NE OF YEPOCAPA, UMMZ 107061; RÍO SOBOLOPOP, 8 KM. W OF PATZÚN, UMMZ 107064; YEPOCAPA, UMMZ 107060. El
Quiche: Nebaj, UMMZ 89202

For ADVANCED PITUOPHIS HERPETOCULTURISTS, HERPETOLOGISTS, or other ENTHUSIASTS only, see the site address below for some excellent scientific follow up information on this genus of ophidians: http://www.sociedadherpetologicamexicana.org/uri/museo/pituo.pdf