Viper

From Academic Kids

Vipers

Photo of Danish viper, Vipera berus (Ravnsholt).

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Family:	Viperidae
Subfamily:	Viperinae

Genera

Adenorhinos
Atheris
Azemiops
Bitis
Cerastes
Daboia
Echis
Eristicophis
Macrovipera
Montatheris
Proatheris
Pseudocerastes
Vipera

This page is about Viper snakes. For other uses see Viper (disambiguation).

Vipers are venomous snakes belonging to the Viperidae family (consisting of roughly 150 species). They are characterised by long erectile fangs, which are folded back when not in use. They also have triangle-shaped heads with a distinctly narrower neck. The broad areas of the head house the venom glands. Their eyes have irises like those of a cat. Being 0.3–3 m long, vipers feed on small animals, which are injected with venom and then followed until they die.

The viper's venom is a haemotoxin, and is generally more dangerous than the neurotoxin of a cobra. Since vipers possess a poor digestive system, they rely on the venom to do the job via rapid tissue damage. Thus, a bite to humans can, at the worst, be even fatal. The exact effect strongly depends on the type of viper and the constitution and build of the human in question. However, because of the notable tissue damage caused by the venom, even with good treatment the bite is sure to leave a permanent mark. At the very worst, the area may even have to be amputated.

Common name	Scientific name	Geographic range
Bush Viper	Atheris squamiger	Angola, Cameroon, Uganda, Kenya
Carpet Viper	Echis coloratus	Africa, Asia
Cyclades Blunt-Nosed Viper	Vipera lebetina schweizeri	Greece
Crossed Viper	Vipera berus berus	British Isles, Europe, Russia, China, Spain
European Asp	Vipera aspis aspis	Austria, Germany, Italy, France
Fea's Viper	Azemiops feae	Burma, SE Tibet, China
Gaboon Viper	Bitis gabonica	Equatorial Africa
Horned Desert Viper	Cerastes cerastes cerastes	Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq
Leaf-Nosed Viper	Eristocophis macmaboni	Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan
Long-Nosed Viper	Vipera ammodytes ammodytes	Hungary, Austria, Italy, Romania, Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia, Serbia and Montenegro, Albania
Palestinian Viper	Vipera palaestinae	Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan
Rhinoceros Viper	Bitis nasicornis	Kenya, Uganda, Angola, Zaire
Rough-Scaled Tree Viper	Atheris bispidus	Kenya, Uganda, Zaire
Russell's Viper	Vipera russelli	Pakistan, India
Saw-scaled Viper	Echis carinatus leakeyi	Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia

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Closely related groups

Adder
Pit Vipers may be treated as a subfamily (Crotalinae) of the viper family Viperidae (with "true vipers" or pitless vipers in the subfamily Viperinae), or as a family of their own, Crotalidae.
Saharan Horned Viper

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