Viperinae, or viperines, are a subfamily of vipers endemic to Europe, Asia and Africa. They are distinguished by their lack of the heat-sensing pit organs that characterize their sister group, the subfamily Crotalinae. Currently, 13 genera are recognized.[2] Most are tropical and subtropical, although one species, Vipera berus, even occurs within the Arctic Circle.[3] Like all vipers, they are venomous.
| Viperinae | |
|---|---|
| |
| Chain viper, Daboia russelii, a viperine | |
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Viperidae |
| Subfamily: | Viperinae Oppel, 1811 |
| Synonyms | |
The common names "pitless vipers", "true vipers", "Old World vipers",[3] and "true adders"[4] all refer to this group.
Description
editMembers of this subfamily range in size from Bitis schneideri, which grows to a maximum total length (body and tail) of 280 mm (11 in), to the Gaboon viper, which reaches a maximum total length of over 2 m (6.6 ft). Most species are terrestrial, but a few, such as those of the genus Atheris, are completely arboreal.[3]
Although the heat-sensing pits that characterize the Crotalinae are clearly lacking in the viperines, a supernasal sac with sensory function has been described in a number of species. This sac is an invagination of the skin between the supranasal and nasal scales and is connected to the ophthalmic branch of the trigeminal nerve. The nerve endings here resemble those in the labial pits of boas. The supernasal sac is present in the genera Daboia, Pseudocerastes and Causus, but is especially well developed in the genus Bitis. Experiments have shown that strikes are not only guided by visual and chemical cues, but also by heat, with warmer targets being struck more frequently than colder ones.[3]
Geographic range
editViperinae are found in Europe, Asia, and Africa,[1] but not in Madagascar.[5]
Reproduction
editGenerally, members of this subfamily are ovoviviparous, although a few, such as Pseudocerastes, Cerastes, and some Echis species are oviparous (egg-laying).[3]
Genera
edit| Genus[2] | Taxon author[2] | Species[2] | Common name[3][6] | Geographic range[1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Atheris | Cope, 1862 | 18 | Bush vipers | Tropical sub-Saharan Africa, excluding southern Africa. |
| Bitis | Gray, 1842 | 18 | Puff adders | Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula. |
| Cerastes | Laurenti, 1768 | 3 | Horned vipers | North Africa eastward through Arabia and Iran. |
| Daboia | Gray, 1842 | 4 | Day adders | Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, China (Guangxi and Guangdong), Taiwan and Indonesia (Endeh, Flores, east Java, Komodo, Lomblen islands). |
| Echis | Merrem, 1820 | 12 | Saw-scaled vipers | India and Sri Lanka, parts of the Middle East and Africa north of the equator. |
| Eristicophis | Alcock and Finn, 1897 | 1 | McMahon's viper | The desert region of Balochistan near the Iran-Afghanistan-Pakistan border. |
| Macrovipera | Reuss, 1927 | 2 | Large Palearctic vipers | Semideserts and steppes of Northern Africa, the Near and Middle East, and Milos in the Aegean Sea. |
| Montatheris | Broadley, 1996 | 1 | Kenya mountain viper | Kenya: moorlands of the Aberdare Range and Mount Kenya above 3,000 m (9,800 ft). |
| Montivipera | Nilson, Tuniyev, Andren, Orlov, Joger, & Herrmann, 1999 | 8 | Upland vipers | Middle East |
| Proatheris | Broadley, 1996 | 1 | Lowland viper | Floodplains from southern Tanzania (northern end of Lake Malawi) through Malawi to near Beira, central Mozambique. |
| Pseudocerastes | Boulenger, 1896 | 3 | False-horned vipers | From the Sinai of Egypt eastward to Pakistan. |
| Vipera[a] | Laurenti, 1768 | 21 | Palearctic vipers | Great Britain and nearly all of continental Europe across the Arctic Circle and on some islands in the Mediterranean (Elba, Montecristo, Sicily) and Aegean Sea eastward across Northern Asia to Sakhalin and North Korea. Also found in Northern Africa in Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. |
Taxonomy
editUntil relatively recently[when?], two other genera were also included in the Viperinae. However, they were eventually considered so distinctive within the Viperidae, that separate subfamilies were created for them:[1]
- Genus Azemiops — moved to subfamily Azemiopinae by Liem, Marx & Rabb (1971).
- Genus Causus — recognition of subfamily Causinae Cope, 1860 was proposed by Groombridge (1987) and further supported by Cadle (1992).
Nevertheless, these groups, together with the genera currently recognized as belonging to the Viperinae, are still often referred to collectively as the true vipers.[3]
Broadley (1996) recognized a new tribe, Atherini, for the genera Atheris, Adenorhinos, Montatheris and Proatheris, the type genus for which is Atheris.[1]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré T. 1999. Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, Volume 1. Washington, District of Columbia: Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN 1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN 1-893777-01-4 (volume).
- ^ a b c d "Viperinae". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 4 August 2006.
- ^ a b c d e f g Mallow D, Ludwig D, Nilson G. 2003. True Vipers: Natural History and Toxinology of Old World Vipers. Malabar, Florida: Krieger Publishing Company, Malabar. 359 pp. ISBN 0-89464-877-2.
- ^ U.S. Navy. 1991. Poisonous Snakes of the World. US Govt. New York: Dover Publications Inc. 203 pp. ISBN 0-486-26629-X.
- ^ Stidworthy J. 1974. Snakes of the World. New York: Grosset & Dunlap Inc. 160 pp. ISBN 0-448-11856-4.
- ^ Spawls S, Branch B. 1995. The Dangerous Snakes of Africa. Ralph Curtis Books. Dubai: Oriental Press. 192 pp. ISBN 0-88359-029-8.
Further reading
edit
- Breidenbach CH. 1990. Thermal Cues Influence Strikes in Pitless Vipers. Journal of Herpetology 4: 448–450.
- Broadley DG. 1996. A review of the tribe Atherini (Serpentes: Viperidae), with the descriptions of two new genera. African Journal of Herpetology 45 (2): 40–48.
- Cantor TE. 1847. Catalogue of Reptiles Inhabiting the Malayan Peninsula and Islands. Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Calcutta 16 (2): 607–656, 897–952, 1026-1078 [1040].
- Cuvier G. 1817. Le règne animal distribué d'après son organisation, pour servir de base à l'histoire naturelle des animaux det d'introduction à l'anatomie comparée. Tome II, contenant les reptiles, les poissons, les mollusques et les annélidés. Paris: Déterville. xviii 532 pp. [80].
- Eichwald, E. 1831. Zoologia specialis, quam expositis animalibus tum vivis, tum fossilibus potissimuni rossiae in universum, et poloniae in specie, in usum lectionum publicarum in Universitate Caesarea Vilnensi. Vilnius: Zawadski. 3: 404 pp. [371].
- Fitzinger LJFJ. 1826. Neue classification der reptilien nach ihren natürlichen verwandtschaften. Nebst einer verwandtschafts-tafel und einem verzeichnisse der reptilien-sammlung des K. K. zoologischen museum's zu Wien. Vienna: J.G. Hübner. vii 66 pp. [11].
- Gray JE. 1825. A Synopsis of the Genera of Reptiles and Amphibia, with a Description of some New Species. Annals of Philosophy, New Series, 10: 193-217 [205].
- Günther ACLG. 1864. The Reptiles of British India. London: Ray Society. xxvii 452 pp. [383].
- Latreille PA. 1825. Familles naturelles du règne animal, exposés succinctement et dans un ordre analytique, avec l'indication de leurs genres. Paris: Baillière. 570 pp. [102].
- Lynn WG. 1931. The Structure and Function of the Facial Pit of the Pit Vipers. American Journal of Anatomy 49: 97.
- Oppel M. 1811. Mémoire sur la classification des reptiles. Ordre II. Reptiles à écailles. Section II. Ophidiens. Annales du Musée National d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris 16: 254–295, 376–393. [376, 378, 389].
- Strauch A. 1869. "Synopsis der Viperiden: nebst Bemerkungen über die geographische Verbreitung dieser Giftschlangen-Familie". Mémoires de l'Académie impériale des sciences de St.-Pétersbourg. 7e série. 14 (6): 1–114 [19]. BHL page 46560849