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Contia (snake)

genus of reptiles

Specimen drawers, botanical folios and brass scientific instruments under study light
Science and natureInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionMay 17, 2026
Entity authorityQ2995645 ↗
Source-derived summary

Contia is a small genus of small snakes in the subfamily Dipsadinae of the family Colubridae. The genus is native to western North America.

Etymology

The generic name, Contia, is in honor of American entomologist John Lawrence LeConte.

Species

There are two species which are recognized as being valid.

References

Further reading

Baird SF, Girard CF (1853). Catalogue of North American Reptiles in the Museum of the Smithsonian Institution. Part I.—Serpents. Washington, District of Columbia: Smithsonian Institution. xvi + 172 pp. (Contia, new genus, p.

Editorial summary

“Contia (snake)” enters the record as genus of reptiles. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Contia, snake and genus can confirm, complicate or overturn.

Editorial reviewA practical orientation to terminology and classification, particularly when read beside dated observations, specimens or technical literature. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1853—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. Its strongest next move is a source search built around Contia, snake and genus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

“Contia (snake)” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Contia, snake and genus provides the most credible route into that argument.

Evidence profile

Datasets, specimens, observations and peer-reviewed methods provide the appropriate test for the technical claims summarized here. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 17, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2995645. The Library of Congress control number is sh93004250. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1853.

Critical limits

Current terminology should not be projected backward without checking the classification used when the underlying evidence was created. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Check terminology, classification and the date of the cited evidence. Scientific names and technical consensus can change while older records retain historical value.

Best used for
  • Current terminology
  • Classification context
  • Finding cited technical literature
Verify next

Primary datasets, specimen catalogues, standards bodies and the most recent peer-reviewed literature.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Contia (snake)”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Contia (snake) primary sources, Contia (snake) archive and Contia research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Contia (snake)”?
  2. Has classification or technical consensus changed since the cited source?
  3. Which observation, specimen, dataset or publication supports the account?
Subject index

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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Contia (snake)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.