Description ³

INTRODUCTION

• Highly Venomous Viperine
• Part of Big 4 : High frequency of snakebites due to presence near human habitations.
• Hemotoxic Venom : Swelling, Bleeding, Tissue Damage, Possible Kidney Failure, Potential Death
• Venom not highly potent, but large doses are injected which make it potentially fatal.
• Not pit vipers, but do have some kind of heat-sensing organ. Able to react to thermal cues.

IDENTIFICATION

• Yellowish-brown body with 3 rows of a unique Chain Pattern bordered by black rings
• Sluggish, stout, robust body with Heavily Keeled Scales.
• Flattened, triangular head distinct from neck. Head has a V like pattern.
• White belly and sometimes speckled, depends on geographical range.
• Vertical pupils like all vipers and have very large fangs.
• Grow to 3-5 feet on average. Mistaken for common sand boas and juvenile pythons.

DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT

• Common throughout peninsular India. Rare in the Northeast.
• Inhabit open bushy areas, scrub jungles and rocky terrain.
• Usually avoid wet environments and dense rainforests.
• Hides in Rock crevices, thick bushes and leaves.
• In hot temperatures, found in Termite mounds and rodent burrows

DIET AND BEHAVIOR

• Primarily feed on rodents and sometimes lizards.
• Juveniles feed on small reptiles and known to be cannibalistic.
• Entirely terrestrial and Nocturnal and more active during dusk
• Seen basking during the daytime in winters.
• When threatened produces a very loud whistle like hiss and coils up.
• Very aggressive if harassed. Will bite if in strike range which is quite big.

Sources and Credits

1. (c) Yu Ching Tam, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC-ND), uploaded by Yu Ching Tam
2. (c) Vinay Gogula, all rights reserved, uploaded by Vinay Gogula
3. (c) Vinay Gogula, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA)

More Info

• iNat taxon page
• Animal Diversity Web
• Biodiversity Heritage Library
• BOLD Systems BIN search
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF)
• HerpMapper
• Snake Database
• The Reptile Database
• VertNet

iNat Map