Lachesis melanocephala
Lachesis melanocephala is a venomous pit viper species found in Costa Rica. No subspecies are currently recognized.[3][4]
| Lachesis melanocephala | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Viperidae |
| Genus: | Lachesis |
| Species: | L. melanocephala |
| Binomial name | |
| Lachesis melanocephala Solórzano & Cerdas, 1986 | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
- Common names: black-headed bushmaster.[2]
Description
Adults frequently grow to 1.9–2 m (6.2–6.6 ft) in total length. The largest reported specimens were 2.3 m (7.5 ft) by Solórzano (2004), and 2.4 m (7.9 ft) by Ripa (2001).
The top of the head is uniform black in color,[2] to which the specific name, melanocephala, refers.
Geographic range
Found in Costa Rica on the Pacific versant of southeastern Puntarenas province from near sea level to about 1500 m (about 4,900 feet). The type locality given is "tropical rainforest 9 km northern of Ciudad Neily in southeastern Provincia de Puntarenas, Costa Rica."[1]
Campbell and Lamar (2004) describe its range as southwestern Costa Rica and possibly extreme western Panama, but state that almost all locality records are from Puntarenas province.[2]
References
- McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré T. 1999. Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, vol. 1. Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN 1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN 1-893777-01-4 (volume).
- Campbell JA, Lamar WW. 2004. The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere. 2 volumes. Comstock Publishing Associates, Ithaca and London. 870 pp. 1500 plates. ISBN 0-8014-4141-2.
- Lachesis melanocephala at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 19 March 2015.
- "Lachesis melanocephala". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 5 August 2008.
Further reading
- Solórzano, Alejandro, and Luis Cerdas. 1986. A new subspecies of the bushmaster, Lachesis muta, from southeastern Costa Rica. Journal of Herpetology 20 (3): 463–466. (Lachesis muta melanocephala")