Vipers and Pitvipers: Viperidae - Physical Characteristics, Habitat, Diet, Behavior And Reproduction, Vipers, Pitvipers, And People - GEOGRAPHIC RANGE
Vipers and pitvipers are found in North, Central, and South America and in Africa, Europe, and Asia.
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Vipers and pitvipers are mainly known for the pair of short hollow fangs that usually lie flat in the upper jaw but swing down when the snake opens its mouth to inject its venom. The members of this family are typically rather thick snakes with large triangular-shaped heads, usually catlike eye pupils, and short tails. The tail in a snake is the part of the body behind the vent, a slitlike opening…
Most members of this family live on land, but some, such as the cottonmouth, spend a good part of their time in the water. Vipers and pitvipers make their homes in warm tropical climates and in cooler temperate climates that have distinct seasons, including cold winters. Temperate species often move from one habitat to another during the spring, summer, and fall and then hibernate through the wint…
Vipers and pitvipers eat mice, rats, and lizards, but they will also feed on birds, frogs, and other animals. A few of the smallest species eat locusts, a type of grasshopper. Vipers and pitvipers are predators (PREH-dih-ters) and use their venom when hunting prey or sometimes when defending themselves. The venom attacks the blood system of the prey, producing burning pain and other symptoms, and …
The defense behaviors of the vipers and pitvipers are perhaps their best-known feature. The snakes coil up into a flat spiral with the head curved up from the middle of the coil. Some also hiss, jerk forward with the head, rattle the tail, or blow up the body, which makes the snake look larger. Each of the behaviors may be enough to scare off a predator. Many of the warmer climate species remain a…
While viper and pitviper bites of humans are quite rare, they do occur often enough and cause enough deaths to be a concern in some areas. For this reason, people often kill vipers and pitvipers, along with any other snakes that remotely resemble them. In addition, people hunt and kill these snakes to use in medicines. …
According to the World Conservation Union (IUCN), seven species are Critically Endangered; four species are Endangered; seven species are Vulnerable, and one species is listed as Data Deficient. The Critically Endangered species face an extremely high risk of extinction in the wild, while the Endangered species face a very high risk, and the Vulnerable face a high risk. Scientists have too little …
Physical characteristics: A thick snake with a short tail, the horned viper has a triangle-shaped head and a long scale over each eye that pokes up like a horn. Some individuals have a ridge over their eyes instead of the two tall horns. They have brown blotches down a gray, yellow- or red-tinged back, and the back and head scales have ridges, or keels. Adults are quite small, usually growing to j…
Physical characteristics: The cottonmouth gets its common name from the white, cottonlike color inside its mouth. Also known as the water moccasin, it is a large thick snake. Younger adults have brown or reddish bands on a yellowish background, while older individuals are usually all brown, greenish brown, or black. Juveniles have tails that are tipped with yellow or green. In the wild, adults may…
Physical characteristics: The timber rattlesnake is a thick snake, often with dark, sometimes V-shaped blotches running down a black, dark or light brown, yellowish, or gray back. It has a large triangle-shaped head at one end and a black rattle-tipped tail at the other. Adults often reach nearly 5 feet (1.5 meters) in length, and some grow to more than 6 feet (1.8 meters). Geographic range: They …
Physical characteristics: As its name says, the top of the black-headed bushmaster's head is black. The back of this large snake has black diamond-shaped blotches on a dark or light brown or yellowish background. Adults often reach 6.6 feet (2 meters) in length but can grow to 7.9 feet (2.4 meters). Geographic range: They are found in Costa Rica, possibly reaching into Panama. Habitat: This…
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