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Pit Vipers (sometimes called crotalines) are mostly New World vipers found in North, Central and South America; along with approximately 69 species occuring in Southeast Asia, Malaysian Archipelago, the Caspian region of Europe, China and Japan. Depending on the taxonomist, Pit Vipers may be treated as a subfamily (Crotalinae) of the viper family Viperidae (with "true vipers" or pitless vipers in the subfamily Viperinae), or as a family of their own, Crotalidae. These snakes are named after their specialized thermoreceptors, heat-sensitive organs located on the head which take the form of small pits. There are approximately 22 genera of Pit Vipers in total, the largest and most familiar being the rattlesnakes (genera Crotalus and Sistrurus). Other species include the American copperhead and Cottonmouth (genus Agkistrodon) and the asian pit vipers (genera Trimeresurus and Gloydius). Head of a Mexican Ridged Nosed Rattlesnake with one of two distinctive cranial pits (thermoreceptors common to all pit vipers) visible between the nostril and eye. ...
Scientific classification or biological classification is how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ...
Phyla Porifera (sponges) Ctenophora (comb jellies) Cnidaria (coral, jellyfish, anenomes) Placozoa (trichoplax) Subregnum Bilateria (bilateral symmetry) Acoelomorpha (basal) Orthonectida (parasitic to flatworms, echinoderms, etc. ...
Typical Classes Subphylum Urochordata - Tunicatas Ascidiacea Thaliacea Larvacea Subphylum Cephalochordata - Lancelets Subphylum Myxini - Hagfishes Subphylum Vertebrata - Vertebrates Petromyzontida - Lampreys Placodermi (extinct) Chondrichthyes - Cartilaginous fishes Acanthodii (extinct) Actinopterygii - Ray-finned fishes Actinistia - Coelacanths Dipnoi - Lungfishes Amphibia - Amphibians Reptilia - Reptiles Aves - Birds Mammalia - Mammals Chordates (phylum Chordata) include the vertebrates, together with...
Orders See text. ...
Suborders Amphisbaenia - Worm lizards Sauria- Lizards Serpentes - Snakes Squamata (scaled reptiles) is the largest recent order of reptiles, including lizards and snakes. ...
Subfamilies Crotalinae (Pit Vipers) Viperinae (Vipers) The Viperidae family is made up of two subfamilies: Crotalinae (Pit Vipers) Viperinae (Vipers) Categories: Stub | Snakes ...
Carte dAmérique, Guillaume Delisle, c. ...
Genera Adenorhinos Atheris Azemiops Bitis Cerastes Daboia Echis Eristicophis Macrovipera Montatheris Proatheris Pseudocerastes Vipera This page is about Viper snakes. ...
World map showing North America A satellite composite image of North America. ...
Commonly, Central America is the region of North America located between the southern border of Mexico and the northwest border of Colombia, in South America. ...
South America South America is a continent crossed by the equator, with most of its area in the Southern Hemisphere. ...
In biology, a species is the basic unit of biodiversity. ...
Location of Southeast Asia Southeast Asia is a subregion of Asia. ...
Caspian Sea viewed from orbit The Caspian Sea is a landlocked endorheic sea between Asia and Europe (European Russia). ...
World map showing Europe A satellite composite image of Europe Europe is conventionally considered one of the seven continents which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiogeographic one. ...
Taxonomy (from Greek ταξινομία from the words taxis = order and nomos = law) may refer to either a hierarchical classification of things, or the principles underlying the classification. ...
Scientific classification or biological classification refers to how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ...
Scientific classification or biological classification refers to how biologists group and categorize extinct and living species of organisms. ...
Subfamilies Crotalinae (Pit Vipers) Viperinae (Vipers) The Viperidae family is made up of two subfamilies: Crotalinae (Pit Vipers) Viperinae (Vipers) Categories: Stub | Snakes ...
Genera Adenorhinos Atheris Azemiops Bitis Cerastes Daboia Echis Eristicophis Macrovipera Montatheris Proatheris Pseudocerastes Vipera This page is about Viper snakes. ...
A thermoreceptor is a sensory receptor that responds to heat and cold. ...
A red-hot iron rod cooling after being worked by a blacksmith. ...
In biology, an organ (Latin: organum, instrument, tool) is a group of tissues, which perform a specific function or group of functions. ...
In biology, a genus (plural genera) is a grouping in the classification of living organisms having one or more related and morphologically similar species. ...
Genera Crotalus (24 species) Sistrurus (3 species) Species 27, including: - Sidewinder - Massasauga Rattlesnakes are a group of venomous New World snakes, genera Crotalus and Sistrurus, which have a small noise-making jointed rattle on their tails. ...
Species about 30 Rattlesnakes are a group of venomous New World snakes, genera Crotalus and Sistrurus, which have a small noise-making jointed rattle on their tails. ...
Species about 30 Rattlesnakes is a group of venomous New World snakes, genera Crotalus and Sistrurus, which have a small noise-making jointed rattle on their tails. ...
Binomial name Agkistrodon contortrix Linnaeus, 1766 The American copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix) is a species of venomous viper native to eastern North America. ...
Binomial name Agkistrodon piscivorous (Lacépède, 1789) The cottonmouth, or water moccasin (Agkistrodon piscivorous), is a venomous snake closely related to the copperhead. ...
Species Agkistrodon (from Greek ancistron, meaning fishhook) is a genus of snakes of the subfamily Crotalinae. ...
Species see text Gloydius (after Howard Gloyd) is a genus of Old World pit vipers very similar to the North American Agkistrodon. ...
Physiology Like the pitless vipers, all crotalines are highly venomous; the western diamondback rattlesnake (Crotalus atrox) is responsible for the majority of snakebite deaths in North America. Like pitless vipers, pit vipers are solenoglyphous, i.e. their fangs are hollow and hinged, folding back against the roof of the mouth when not in use. Pit Vipers also closely resemble other vipers, having broad triangular heads and heavy builds with short, stubby tails which may or may not include a rattle. It has been suggested that Snake poison be merged into this article or section. ...
Binomial name about 30 Species about 30 Rattlesnakes are a group of venomous New World snakes, genera Crotalus and Sistrurus, which have a small noise-making jointed rattle on their tails. ...
The titular pits are between the nostril and the eye on either side of the Pit Viper's head. They contain membranes sensitive to infrared radiation; this allows the snakes to detect prey whose body temperatures are higher or lower than the surrounding environment, namely small rodents, birds and lizards. The temperature difference need not be great; fractions of a degree are enough. This adaptation serves the vipers well, as they are nocturnal animals and rely heavily on this "sixth sense". This adaptation is observed in only one other group of snakes, the boas. Image of a small dog taken in mid-infrared (thermal) light (false color) Infrared (IR) radiation is electromagnetic radiation of a wavelength longer than visible light, but shorter than microwave radiation. ...
Families See Classification Section The order Rodentia is the most numerous of all the branches on the mammal family tree. ...
Aves redirects here. ...
Families Many, see text. ...
A nocturnal animal is one that sleeps during the day and is active at night - the opposite of the human (diurnal) schedule. ...
Screencaps from interview with BoA prior to her debut (1999~2000) BoA (권보아 Kwon Boa, born in November 5, 1986) is a singer. ...
In terms of length, Pit Vipers range in size from Eyelash Pit Vipers (Bothriechis schleglii) at a maximum 50 centimetres (20 inches), to the Bushmaster (Lachesis muta) at an imposing 3.5 metres (11.5 feet). Incidentally, the Bushmaster is also the largest of all vipers, and the largest venomous snake in the New World. Bothriechis shelegii Eyelash Pit Vipers are mostly New World vipers found in North, Central and South America. ...
Binomial name Lachesis muta Linnaeus, 1766 The bushmaster (Lachesis muta) is a venomous snake of the viper family. ...
Habitat and behavior
Pit Vipers are a versatile group, with members found in habitats ranging from parched desert (e.g., rattlesnakes) to rainforests (e.g., fer-de-lance) and even aquatic settings (e.g., the water moccasin). Species may be either arboreal or terrestrial. Some species may be found at elevations exceeding 1,000 metres. Image File history File links Pit_viper. ...
Image File history File links Pit_viper. ...
Bako National Park, established in 1957, is the oldest national park in Sarawak, eastern Malaysia, on the island of Borneo. ...
State motto: United, Industrious, Dedicated (Malay: Bersatu, Berusaha, Berbakti ) Capital Kuching Governor T.Y.T Tun Datuk Patinggi Abang Muhammad Salahuddin Chief Minister Y.A.B. Datuk Patinggi Tan Sri Haji Abdul Taib Bin Mahmud / Pehin Sri Dr. Hj. ...
Habitat (from the Latin for it inhabits) is the place where a particular species lives and grows. ...
A dune in the Egyptian desert In geography, a desert is a landscape form or region that receives little precipitation - less than 250 mm (10 in) per year. ...
The Daintree Rainforest in Queensland, Australia. ...
Binomial name Bothrops atrox , The common lancehead (Bothrops atrox), often mistakenly referred to as the fer-de-lance, is a small pit viper of the Bothrops genre, native to the tropical regions of Central and South America. ...
Binomial name Agkistrodon piscivorous (Lacépède, 1789) The Cottonmouth, or water moccasin (Agkistrodon piscivorous), is a venomous snake closely related to the copperhead. ...
This article is about the biological organisms known as trees. ...
Although mostly nocturnal, some species are highly active by day; one example is Trimeresurus trigonocephalus, a bright green pit viper endemic to Sri Lanka with yellow and black camouflage. The majority are active by night to avoid scorching daytime temperatures and to hunt when their preferred prey are also active. The snakes' heat-sensitive pits are also thought to aid in the location of cooler areas in which to rest. In biology and ecology endemic means exclusively native to a place or biota, in contrast to cosmopolitan or one of various ways of being not native (e. ...
Crotalines are characteristically ambush predators, lying in patient wait for unsuspecting prey to wander by. At least one species, the arboreal Gloydius shedaoensis of China, is known to select a specific ambush site and return to it every year in time for the spring migration of birds. Studies have indicated that these snakes learn to improve their strike accuracy over time[1].
Many temperate species (e.g. most rattlesnakes) will congregate in sheltered areas or dens to overwinter (see hibernation), the snakes benefitting from the combined heat. In cool temperatures and while pregnant vipers also bask on sunny ledges. Some species do not mass together in this way, among them the Copperheads and the Mojave Rattlesnake (Cortalus scutulatus). Hibernation is a state of regulated hypothermia, lasting several days or weeks, that allows animals to conserve energy during the winter. ...
The Mojave Rattlesnake (Crotalus scutulatus) is found in the desert Southwest of the United States and Central Mexico. ...
Like most snakes, crotalines keep to themselves and will strike only if cornered or threatened. Smaller snakes are less likely to stand their ground than are larger specimens.
Pollution and the destruction of rainforests has caused many viper populations to decline. Humans also threaten vipers, as many vipers are hunted for their skins or killed by cars when they wander onto roads.
Reproduction With few exceptions, Pit Vipers are ovoviviparous; that is, females give birth to live young. The young are well-developed and are capable of delivering a fatal bite right from the time of birth. The young snakes stay with their mother for about two weeks, or until their first molt. Ovoviviparous animals develop within eggs that remain within the mother up until they hatch or are about to. ...
In birds, moulting or molting is the routine shedding of old feathers. ...
Among the oviparous (egg-laying) Pit Vipers are the Bushmaster, Calloselasma species, and some Trimeresurus species. It is believed that all egg-laying crotalines guard their eggs. Bushmaster is a name that has been applied to a number of things: Bushmaster (snake) (Lachesis muta), a venomous snake of the viper family. ...
Species about 30 The bamboo vipers are a groups of venomous snakes in the genus Trimesurus. ...
Brood sizes range from two individuals in very small species to as many as 86 in the fer-de-lance, a species among the most prolific of the live-bearing snakes. Many young crotalines have brightly coloured tails which contrast dramatically with the rest of their bodies; using worm-like movements, the young snakes may use their tails as a lure. A worm is an elongated soft-bodied invertebrate animal. ...
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