NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Peten Centipede Snake
Tantilla hendersoni Stafford, 2004
Source-backed taxonomic record
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.
Open encyclopedia reference
Tantilla hendersoni, also known as the Peten centipede snake, is a species of snake in the subfamily Colubrinae of the family Colubridae. It is generally very dark blackish-brown in color, with an orange-tan stripe running down the center of the body, a bright yellow collar around the neck, and two yellow-white lines along the sides. The species is currently only known from the Maya Mountains of Belize, but may also occur in neighbouring Guatemala. It inhabits broadleaf forest.
Wikipedia contributors, Tantilla hendersoni; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T09:33:37.564335+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Tantilla hendersoni Stafford, 2004
- Name authority
- Stafford, 2004
- Common name
- Peten Centipede Snake
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Colubridae
- Genus
- Tantilla
- 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
- familyColubridae
- subfamilyColubrinae
- genusTantilla
- speciesTantilla hendersoni Stafford, 2004
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Tantilla. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Barbour's Centipede SnakeTantilla albiceps Barbour, 1925 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Andes Centipede SnakeTantilla andinista Wilson & Mena, 1980 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Bocourt's Black-headed SnakeTantilla bocourti (Günther, 1895) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Pacific Coast Centipede SnakeTantilla calamarina Cope, 1866 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Michoacán Centipede SnakeTantilla cascadae Wilson & Meyer, 1981 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Peten Centipede SnakeTantilla cuniculator Smith, 1939 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Yellow-lined Centipede SnakeTantilla flavilineata Smith & Burger, 1950 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Southwestern Blackhead SnakeTantilla hobartsmithi Taylor, 1937 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Greater Centipede SnakeTantilla impensa Campbell, 1998 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Jan's Centipede SnakeTantilla jani (Günther, 1895) | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Johnson’s Centipede SnakeTantilla johnsoni Wilson, Vaughn & Dixon, 1999 | ColubridaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Tantilla miyatai Wilson & Knight, 1987 | ColubridaeChordata | 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=Tantilla&species=hendersoni 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. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
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:54PHB. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.