Species Draeculacephala floridana

Draeculacephala floridana (Ball, 1901)

A very distinct species, it is the only member of this genus with the entire head inflated and nose upturned. Unlike any other Draeculacephala, the markings on the head are speckled. The face is pale green to yellow with black or fuscous muscle scars—in some respects it is similar in appearance to the genus Xypon, especially X. gillettei.

Rare; throughout the Gulf Coast.

Warm coastal regions

"This is the type species of Carneocephala Ball (here regarded as a junior synonym of Draeculacephala). My cladistic analyses support Hamilton's (1985) placement of floridana in Draeculacephala, although the species is morphologically intermediate between this genus and Xyphon Hamilton (erected to receive the species formerly included in Carneocephala).

- Dietrich, 1994

Dietrich states that the genus Draeculacephala likely evolved from Xyphon in the neotropics or southwestern U.S., citing floridana as an example of a transitional species. He also states that "evidence supporting the monophyly of Xyphon is weak."

Xyphon reticulatum — a sister genus to Draeculacephala that carries morphological similarities to floridana.