Atheris rungweensis
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Atheris rungweensis, commonly known as the Rungwe tree viper,[1][2] Mt Rungwe bush viper,[3] and Rungwe leaf viper,[4] is a species of venomous snake in the subfamily Viperinae of the family Viperidae. The species is native to East Africa.[3][1]
Taxonomy and etymology
The specific name rungweensis is derived from the species' type locality in the Rungwe Mountains.[5] A. rungweensis was formerly considered as a subspecies of Atheris nitschei.[3][6]
Description
A. rungweensis grows to a maximum total length (tail included) of Script error: No such module "convert".. At midbody, it has 22–33 dorsal scale rows. The ventral scales number 150–165, and the subcaudals 46–58.[2]
The color pattern is variable, with a ground color that ranges from bright green to green to black. Usually, this is overlaid with a pair of yellow dorsolateral zigzag lines. A row of yellow spots on the sides of the ventral scales may also be present. Specimens from the Sumbawanga region usually have a green, yellow, and black color pattern. Neonates are a dark brown or gray, but with a bright yellow tail tip.[6]
Distribution and habitat
A. rungweensis is known from scattered locations from south-western Tanzania to north-eastern Zambia and south to the Nyika Plateau in northern Malawi.[1]
A. rungweensis is usually found in low bushes along streams and at the edges of mountain forests at altitudes of Script error: No such module "convert"..[2][7] Occasionally, it is encountered in moist savanna, woodland, and hill forest habitats.[6]
Behavior
A. rungweensis is fully arboreal.[3]
Reproduction
A. rungweensis is ovoviviparous.[3]
References
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- ↑ a b c Spawls S, Branch B (1995). The Dangerous Snakes of Africa. Dubai: Oriental Press / Ralph Curtis Books. 192 pp. Template:ISBN.
- ↑ a b c Mallow D, Ludwig D, Nilson G (2003). True Vipers: Natural History and Toxinology of Old World Vipers. Malabar, Florida: Krieger Publishing Company. 359 pp. Template:ISBN.
- ↑ a b c d e Atheris rungweensis at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 5 September 2021.
- ↑ Mehrtens JM (1987). Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. Template:ISBN.
- ↑ Cite error: Script error: No such module "Namespace detect".Script error: No such module "Namespace detect".
- ↑ a b c Spawls S, Howell K, Drewes R, Ashe J (2004). A Field Guide to the Reptiles of East Africa. London: A & C Black Publishers Ltd. 543 pp. Template:ISBN.
- ↑ Template:WOA
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Further reading
- Bogert CM (1940). "Herpetological Results of the Vernay Angola Expedition, with Notes on the African Reptiles in Other Collections. Part I. — Snakes, Including an Arrangement of African Colubridae". Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 77: 1–107 + Plate I. (Atheris nitschei rungweensis, new subspecies, pp. 104–106, Figure 18).
- Script error: No such module "Citation/CS1". (Atheris rungweensis, new taxonomic status, p. 122).
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- Script error: No such module "citation/CS1". 624 pp. (Atheris rungweensis, pp. 592–593).