| Coral snake | |
|---|---|
| |
| Eastern coral snake (Micrurus fulvius) | |
Scientific classification
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Superfamily: | Elapoidea |
| Family: | Elapidae |
Coral snakes are a large group of elapid snakes that can be divided into two distinct groups, the Old World coral snakes and New World coral snakes. There are 27 species of Old World coral snakes, in three genera (Calliophis, Hemibungarus, and Sinomicrurus), and 83 recognized species of New World coral snakes, in two genera (Micruroides and Micrurus). Genetic studies have found that the most basal lineages have origins in Asia, suggesting that the group originated in the Old World.[1][2] While new world species of both genera are venomous, their bites are seldom lethal; only two confirmed fatalities have been documented in the past 100 years from the genus Micrurus. Meanwhile, snakes of the genus Micruroides have never caused a medically significant bite.[3]
- ^ Slowinski, J.B.; Keogh J.S. (April 2000). "Phylogenetic Relationships of Elapid Snakes Based on Cytochrome b mtDNA Sequences". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 15 (1): 157–164. doi:10.1006/mpev.1999.0725. PMID 10764543.
- ^ Slowinski, J.B.; Boundy, J.; Lawson, R. (June 2001). "The phylogenetic relationships of Asian coral snakes (Elapidae: Calliophis and Maticora) based on morphological and molecular characters". Herpetologica. 57 (2): 233–245. JSTOR 3893186.
- ^ Greene, Spencer C.; Folt, Jason; Wyatt, Kimberly; Brandehoff, Nicklaus P. (July 2021). "Epidemiology of fatal snakebites in the United States 1989-2018". The American Journal of Emergency Medicine. 45: 309–316. doi:10.1016/j.ajem.2020.08.083. PMID 33046301. S2CID 222320580.