Eyelash Palm Pit Viper
Photographed at the National Zoo in Washington, DC in January 2010.
Taxonomy
Order: Squamata
Family: Viperidae
Genus/species: Bothriechis schlegelii
The eyelash palm pit viper is named for the bristly scales above its eyes. It looks like it has a "hood" or eyelashes over its eyes. It can be easily recognized by its color and triangular head. Individuals are found in different colors such as yellow, green, and pinkish. This great variety usually depends on the geographic origin of snake. It is one of the smallest poisonous snakes in Central America, measuring only up to 2.5 feet (76 cm) and averaging about 22 to 32 inches (56 to 81 cm).
Generally, eyelash vipers don't bite humans unless teased or trampled. They tend to have very long fangs and a bite can be very painful and even deadly. This viper usually attacks its prey quickly, injects hemotoxic venom, and then waits for the prey to die. It then swallows it.
The eyelash viper is mostly nocturnal and is usually found in trees, on the leaves of big plants, or in other vegetation just above the ground. Their scales are keeled so they are rough and sharp to the touch, unlike most snakes whose scales are smooth. Their rough scales may help to protect them against the branches and vines of their arboreal habitat. They have a pair of heat-sensitive pits between the eyes and nostrils. The pupils are long vertical slits.
Distribution and Habitat
Eyelash vipers range from southern Mexico through Central America to Columbia, Ecuador, and western Venezuela. Their habitat ranges from densely wooded, sea-level forests to streamside vegetation in moist lowlands and foothills, to wooded cloud and montane forests. They primarily inhabit shrubbery, vine tangles, low branches of trees, and palms.
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