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NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD

Hung-Ta Chang’s mountain Keelback

Opisthotropis hungtai Wang, Lyu, Zeng, Lin, Yang, Nguyen, Le, Ziegler & Wang, 2020

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.

Figure 6; Morphological features of the adult female paratypes of Opisthotropis hungtai sp. nov. from Dawuling Forestry Station, Guangdong, China. A, B Habitus view and close-up of mid-dorsal body of SYS r001515 C–E habitus view and close-up of head scales of SYS r002017. Photos by Jian Wang.

Figure 6; Morphological features of the adult female paratypes of Opisthotropis hungtai sp. nov. from Dawuling Forestry Station, Guangdong, China. A, B Habitus view and close-up of mid-dorsal body of SYS r001515 C–E habitus view and close-up of head scales of SYS r002017. Photos by Jian Wang.

Wang J, Lyu Z-T, Zeng Z-C, Lin C-Y, Yang J-H, Nguyen TQ, Le MD, Ziegler T, Wang Y-Y (2020) Re-examination of the Chinese record of Opisthotropis maculosa (Squamata, Natricidae), resulting in the first national record of O. haihaensis and description of a new species. ZooKeys 913: 141-159. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.913.48622 · CC BY 4.0 · Image source

Provider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.

Open encyclopedia reference

Opisthotropis hungtai, also known as Hung-Ta Chang's mountain keelback, is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. It is a slender, cylindrical snake with a total length of 393.2–511 cm (155–201 in), snout–vent length of 312–413 cm (123–163 in), and tail length of 81.2–180.5 cm (31.97–71.06 in). The upper side of the head is glossy dark with scattered yellow flecking, the chin shields are yellow with brownish-black mottling at the margins, and eyes are black. The body and tail are glossy dark brown with a single yellow spot on each scale, the ventral scales are yellow with brownish-black margins and flecking, and the subcaudal scales yellow with brownish-black margins. Hung-Ta Chang's mountain keelback can be distinguished from other species in its genus by a combination of its measurements, scalation, and coloration. The species is endemic to mountainous regions in China, where it has been collected from western Guangdong and southeastern Guangxi. It inhabits rocky streams surrounded by dense deciduous forest.

Wikipedia contributors, Opisthotropis hungtai; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T13:09:39.972342+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name
Opisthotropis hungtai Wang, Lyu, Zeng, Lin, Yang, Nguyen, Le, Ziegler & Wang, 2020
Name authority
Wang, Lyu, Zeng, Lin, Yang, Nguyen, Le, Ziegler & Wang, 2020
Common name
Hung-Ta Chang’s mountain Keelback
Rank
species
Accepted status
accepted
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Reptilia
Order
Squamata
Family
Colubridae
Genus
Opisthotropis
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.

  1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
  2. kingdomAnimalia
  3. phylumChordata
  4. subphylumVertebrata
  5. infraphylumGnathostomata
  6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
  7. megaclassTetrapoda
  8. classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
  9. orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
  10. suborderSerpentes Linnaeus, 1758
  11. infraorderAlethinophidia Nopcsa, 1923
  12. familyColubridae
  13. subfamilyNatricinae
  14. genusOpisthotropis
  15. speciesOpisthotropis hungtai Wang, Lyu, Zeng, Lin, Yang, Nguyen, Le, Ziegler & Wang, 2020

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Opisthotropis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

SpeciesClassificationSource status
Lau’s Mountain Stream SnakeOpisthotropis laui Yang, Sung & Chan, 2013ColubridaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Opisthotropis tamdaoensis Ziegler, David & Vu, 2008ColubridaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Yellow-spotted mountain KeelbackOpisthotropis maculosa Stuart & Chuaynkern, 2007ColubridaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Guangxi Mountain KeelbackOpisthotropis guangxiensis Zhao, Jiang & Huang, 1978ColubridaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Sichuan Mountain KeelbackOpisthotropis latouchii (Boulenger, 1899)ColubridaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Maxwell's Mountain KeelbackOpisthotropis maxwelli Boulenger, 1914ColubridaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Gary's Mountain KeelbackOpisthotropis alcalai Brown & Leviton, 1961ColubridaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Hai Ha Mountain Stream KeelbackOpisthotropis haihaensis Ziegler, Pham, Nguyen, Nguyen, Wang, Wang, Stuart & Le, 2019ColubridaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied
Hansel’s Mountain Stream keelbackOpisthotropis hanseli Stuart, Seateun, Chuaynkern, Ren, Bernstein & Phimmachak, 2026ColubridaeChordataAccepted speciesExtinction status not supplied

Browse 1,632 records assigned to Colubridae.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

China (Guangdong)

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.

  1. https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Opisthotropis&species=hungtai 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:8GQ4B. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.