Phylogenetic relationships of xenodermid snakes (Squamata: Serpentes: Xenodermidae), with the description of a new genus

Xenodermidae is a generally poorly known lineage of caenophidian snakes found in South, East and Southeast Asia. We report molecular phylogenetic analyses for a multilocus data set comprising all five currently recognised genera and including new mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequence data for the recently describedStoliczkia vanhnuailianai. Our phylogenetic results provide very strong support for the non-monophyly ofStoliczkia, as presently constituted, withS. borneensisbeing more closely related toXenodermusthan to the Northeast IndianS. vanhnuailianai. Based on phylogenetic relationships and morphological distinctiveness, we transferStoliczkia borneensisto a new monotypic genus endemic to Borneo,Paraxenodermusgen. nov.We also present new morphological data forP. borneensis.