Colubroid

/kəˈluːbrɔɪd/ adjective

Definition

Belonging to or resembling the large group of snakes that includes most modern snake families and share similar skeletal and dental characteristics.

Etymology

From Latin 'colubra' (snake) plus Greek '-oid' (resembling or like). This term became standard in herpetological taxonomy during the 20th century as evolutionary relationships between snakes became clearer through anatomical comparison.

Kelly Says

Colubroid snakes make up about 80% of all living snake species, yet the definition of what makes a snake 'colubroid' keeps changing as DNA studies reveal that these snakes are actually more distantly related than we thought.

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