biology

Oligodon annulifer

Oligodon annulifer is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Oligodon annulifer rather than just read about it. In short: Oligodon annulifer, also known as the ringed kukri snake, is a colubrid snake endemic to the island of Borneo. Taxonomy O. annulifer has a poorly known classification.

Key takeaways

Oligodon annulifer belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Oligodon annulifer to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Oligodon annulifer from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Oligodon annulifer, also known as the ringed kukri snake, is a colubrid snake endemic to the island of Borneo.

Taxonomy O. annulifer has a poorly known classification. A number of other species were originally listed as subspecies of it. A 1999 paper suggested that O. annulifer, which at that point was only known from four juvenile specimens, was actually only a juvenile of a different Oligodon species. However, a 2010 paper confirmed the existence of O. annulifer as a distinct species, based on the recent capture of an adult specimen. The species name annulifer derives from the Latin word anus which means "ring," and the word fero, which means "carry." Oligodon annulifer is a member of the genus Oligodon, a genus common throughout central and tropical Asia. The genus belongs to the snake family Colubridae, the largest snake family, with member species being found on every continent except Antarctica.

Description The species is brown on the back, with black rings that contained oval yellowish-brown spots. A specimen described in 1893 had 26 such rings. The sides of the snake are black, with yellowish lines, and the head is also yellowish brown. It has a dark bar across the forehead, and a dark inverted Y shape above the nape of the neck. The underside of the snake is white, with small black dots. The 1893 specimen, which was a young snake, was 16 centimeters long.

Habitat and ecology Oligodon annulifer is oviparous, or egg-laying. The species is known to eat the eggs of other reptiles, and it has teeth which are adapted for this purpose; they are sharply edged, to slit eggs easily. It primarily lives in lowland rainforest, and it is a terrestrial, or ground-dwelling, species.

Distribution O. annulifer is found on the island of Borneo, where it is thought to be endemic. Specimens have been caught at five different locations across the island, including at Bukit-Baka National Park in Indonesia and the Ulu Temburong National Park in Brunei. It is not thought to be very abundant. It has been observed at up to 100 meters above sea level. Oligodon annulifer has been described from five scattered locations in Borneo, including from inside two protected areas. This broad distribution has led to the IUCN classifying it as a species of "least concern." The habitat that it occupies, lowland rainforest, is under threat from human activity, specifically agricultural activity for the production of palm oil. However, the effect of this activity, which also includes logging and mining, on the snake is not known.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Oligodon annulifer

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Oligodon annulifer claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Oligodon annulifer before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Oligodon annulifer ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Oligodon annulifer

In research: Oligodon annulifer appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Oligodon annulifer in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Oligodon annulifer is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Endemic fauna of Borneo, IUCN Red List least concern species, Oligodon, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Oligodon annulifer outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Oligodon annulifer in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Oligodon annulifer means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Oligodon annulifer out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Oligodon annulifer in simple terms?

Oligodon annulifer, also known as the ringed kukri snake, is a colubrid snake endemic to the island of Borneo. Taxonomy O. annulifer has a poorly known classification.

Why does Oligodon annulifer matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Oligodon annulifer?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Oligodon annulifer.