REPTILIA: SQUAMATA: VIPERIDAE: Bitis

Bitis gabonica Duméril, Bibron and Duméril, 1854

Gaboon viper

Photo & text by Dr. Robert Sprackland.

Range: Forests and forest-fringe areas of equatorial Africa.

Diagnosis: A stout-bodied, broad-headed viper with a light head and nape, a dark brown or black triangular mask from the eye to the back of the jaws, and a pair of side-by-side rhinoceros horns on the snout tip.

Description:

Natural History: Gaboon vipers have the distinction of having the longest fangs of any known snake, with a large pair measuring nearly 6 cm/3 inches in length. The venom glands are large and the venom a powerful haemotoxin (destroys blood cells and vessels). Bites, however, are relatively rare in humans.

These handsome vipers are nearly invisible on the forest floor where they blend in with the leaves and dappled lighting. They are sit-and-wait predators that ambush small mammals and birds that wander within striking range.

Reproduction:

Taxonomy & Relationships:

Variation:

Additional Comments:

Type Specimen:

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