A Rare and Gorgeous Viper Seen in Brazil - Observation of the Week, 9/19/23

Our Observation of the Week is this Murici Lancehead snake (Bothrops muriciensis, Jararacuçu de Murici in Portuguese), seen in Brazil by @josi_goncalves.

“I have always been very curious to know about animals,” says Josi Gonçalves.

At school I loved biology. I always fancied myself a microbiologist, but in college I fell in love with zoology and discovered that I was born to be an ornithologist. I'm currently developing research in my master's degree related to the interaction of insectivorous birds and army ants here at the Centro de Endemismo Pernambuco.

Last year, while collecting data at the Estação Ecológica de Murici,

my teammates and I found this Jararacuçu de Murici. In fact, I almost stepped on it as I didn't see it, it was hidden between two fallen logs. It was so small that it probably wouldn't survive if someone stepped on it.

What Josi and her teammates nearly stepped on was a rarely seen species of viper that was only described in 2001. In their 2012 paper, Graboski, Verissimo, et al say that not much is known about this species, but conclude that like many other members of Bothrops, juvenile murici lanceheads use their white tail tip to lure prey (likely frogs and toads), then switch to being generalist predators as they mature. The species is listed as Critically Endangered by the IUCN, threatened by habitat loss from agriculture.

Josi (above) only joined iNat a few weeks ago and has since been posting mostly older photos (including some really cool stuff like velvet worms).

I discovered iNaturalist through friends and started using it out of curiosity and also so that my records could contribute in some way to science. For me, it has helped me a lot to get to know new species of so many different types and to realize that there are always new things to be discovered and that there is never too much knowledge!

(Some quotes have been lightly edited for clarity.)

- here’s some footage a murici lancehead slithering about in the leaf litter, which seems to be its preferred habitat

- check out the diverse beauty of the genus Bothrops.

Posted on September 19, 2023 10:50 PM by tiwane