Viperinae
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 | |
Viperinae, or viperines, are a
.The common names "pitless vipers", "true vipers", "Old World vipers",[3] and "true adders"[4] all refer to this group.
Description
Members 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
Geographic range
Viperinae are found in Europe, Asia, and Africa,[1] but not in Madagascar.[5]
Reproduction
Generally, members of this subfamily are
Genera
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 | 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 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 | . |
Taxonomy
Until 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 (1971).
- Genus Causus — recognition of subfamily (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]
See also
References
- ^ ISBN 1-893777-01-4(volume).
- ^ a b c d "Viperinae". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 4 August 2006.
- ^ ISBN 0-89464-877-2.
- ISBN 0-486-26629-X.
- ISBN 0-448-11856-4.
- ISBN 0-88359-029-8.
Further reading
- 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