Unless provoked or hungry, the butterfly viper will not bite. Primarily nocturnal, the butterfly viper hides during the day in leaf litter and holes or around fallen trees and tangled roots of forest trees. The butterfly viper is often called the River Jack because it inhabits tropical forests, often near water, or some sort of swampy environment. The front pair of scales may be quite long. The butterfly viper is known as the rhinoceros viper because of the distinctive set of two or three horn-like scales it has above each nostril at the end of the nose. The common name butterfly viper is therefore more distinct and preferred for Bitis nasicornis to avoid confusion. The subspecies was found to be as genetically different from the Gaboon viper as it was from the butterfly viper and thus the rhinoceros viper was designated a separate species and given the scientific name Bitis rhinoceros. The rhinoceros viper was historically recognized as a subspecies of the Gaboon viper, with the scientific name of Bitis gabonica rhinoceros, until 1999 when genetic differences were discovered. Historically, this species was most commonly referred to as the rhinoceros viper, but this introduced confusion after the reclassification of the closely related species, Bitis rhinoceros, also known as the rhinoceros viper. The butterfly viper is also known as the rhinoceros viper, river jack, rhinoceros horned viper, and horned puff adder. Darker colors allow the snake to blend well with the jungle floor. Thus, its brilliant coloration is an adaptive feature. The vivid coloration of the snake gives it excellent camouflage in the dappled light conditions of the forest floor, making it almost invisible. After they shed their skins, the bright colors fade quickly as silt from their generally moist habitat accumulates on the rough scales. Western specimens are more blue, while those from the East are more green. The color patterns vary among individuals and the degree of light and dark colors dependent on the snake’s habitat. The belly is dull green to dirty white, strongly marbled, and blotched in black and gray. The top of the head is blue or green, overlaid with a distinct black arrow mark. Many of the lateral scales have white tips, giving the snake a velvety appearance. A series of dark crimson triangles run down the flanks, narrowly bordered with green or blue. These are enclosed within irregular, black, rhombic blotches. The color pattern of the butterfly viper consists of a series of 15–18 blue or blue-green, oblong markings, each with a lemon-yellow line down the center. The butterfly viper is often considered one of the most beautiful of all snakes because of its incredible coloration. As is true with all snakes in the Viperidae family, the butterfly viper sheds its fangs periodically, every 6-10 weeks. As such, the butterfly viper may open its mouth without the fangs flipping down into place. When not in use, the fangs are folded up into the roof of the snake’s mouth. The butterfly viper has the ability to control the movement of its fangs. These fangs penetrate deep into the snake’s victim, allowing small doses of venom to flow into the wound. These fangs are not large, rarely more than 1.5 centimeters, or 0.59 inches, long. The butterfly viper has a pair of hollow fangs in its mouth. Holding a butterfly viper by the tail is not safe as it can use it to fling itself upwards and strike. The butterfly viper’s neck is thin and its eyes are small and set well forward.īutterfly vipers have a partially prehensile tail that aids their climbing behavior. The head is considerably smaller in size than its body and has a large, dark triangular, arrow-shaped marking on the back. One of the butterfly viper’s most distinguishing characteristics is its small, flattened, narrow, triangular-shaped head. The butterfly viper’s scales are so rough and heavily keeled that they sometimes inflict cuts on handlers when the snakes struggle. There are 12-32 paired subcaudals, enlarged plates on the underside of the tail, with males having a higher count of 25–30 than females with 16–19. There are 117–140 ventral scales and a single anal scale. The butterfly viper’s midbody has 31–43 dorsal scale rows. Butterfly vipers display sexual dimorphism as females are usually the larger of the two monomorphic sexes. Some butterfly vipers have been reported to reach 2.1 meters, or 7 feet. Maximum total lengths of up to 1.2 meters, or 47.2 inches, are possible, but are an exception. Adult butterfly vipers have an average total length, from body to tail, of 60-107 centimeters, or 23-42 inches. The butterfly viper is a large, stout, heavy-bodied snake.
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