Psammophis aegyptius Marx, 1958
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.

ארבע קו מצרי. נמצא בקיבוץ נערן בבקעת הירדן. נתפס בכניסה לפעוטון בכד יוגורט ושחורר בשטח פתוח.
Saar Dayag (סער דייג) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
Psammophis aegyptius, commonly known as the Saharan sand snake or Egyptian sand snake, is a species of highly agile, diurnal reptiles belonging to the family Psammophiidae. Originally described by herpetologist Hymen Marx in 1958, it was historically classified as a subspecies of Psammophis schokari before genetic testing confirmed it as a distinct, valid species.
Wikipedia contributors, Psammophis aegyptius; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T14:47:16.965927+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Psammophis aegyptius Marx, 1958
- Name authority
- Marx, 1958
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Psammophiidae
- Genus
- Psammophis
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
- orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
- suborderSerpentes Linnaeus, 1758
- infraorderAlethinophidia Nopcsa, 1923
- familyPsammophiidae
- genusPsammophis
- speciesPsammophis aegyptius Marx, 1958
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Psammophis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Ansorge’s Sand SnakePsammophis ansorgii Boulenger, 1905 | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Elegant Sand RacerPsammophis elegans (Shaw, 1802) | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Psammophis indochinensis Smith, 1943 | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Pakistan Sand RacerPsammophis leithii Günther, 1869 | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Steppe Ribbon RacerPsammophis lineolatus (Brandt, 1838) | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Long Sand RacerPsammophis longifrons Boulenger, 1890 | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Beautiful Sand snakePsammophis pulcher Boulenger, 1895 | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Egyptian Hissing Sand SnakePsammophis sibilans (Linnaeus, 1758) | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Northern stripe-bellied sand snakePsammophis sudanensis Werner, 1919 | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Tanganyika Sand SnakePsammophis tanganicus Loveridge, 1940 | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Zambian Whip SnakePsammophis zambiensis Hughes & Wade, 2002 | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Sand SnakePsammophis condanarus (Merrem, 1820) | PsammophiidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Psammophis&species=aegyptius Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:4NCWH. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.