Adder

Vipera berus

Identification 4

Adder's body as many will tell you displays a jagged line from head to tail. This is at best a problematic identification feature however as adders can have light brown to completely black colouring where this line is less discernable to non-existent. Far better feature is the head of the snake, which will have a triangular shape when observed from above. Even better yet is the shape of the eye dislaying a horizontal slit and a "brow" which gives the snake a mean looking face. Adders are comonly mistook for a natricid snake Coronella austriaca which do seem to have a similar pattern on their backs. When looking at the head however, the difference is undeniable.

Ecology & Behaviour 4

Adders live very secretively and are very discreet. They bask in small spaces coiled around themselves. The coil is aproximately the size of your palm so it's exceptionally hard to detect them. Adders hide throughout the day under a various debris and around forrest edges. They search semi open landscape idealy near water bodies, since juveniles feast on amphibians and small lizards.

Identifikace (CZ) 4

Zmije lze poznat zpravidla podle zornice, která je narozdíl od osattních našich hadů svislá. Pro zkušenější pozorovatele je dobrým ukazatelem tvar těla, které je bachraté

Sources and Credits

  1. (c) Gert Jan Verspui, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Gert Jan Verspui
  2. (c) Md. Shamsuzzaman, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Md. Shamsuzzaman
  3. (c) martind, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by martind
  4. (c) Martin Vohralík, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

More Info

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