Macrovipera

Taxobox
name = "Macrovipera"

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image_caption = Blunt-nosed viper, "M. l. turanica"
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
subphylum = Vertebrata
classis = Reptilia
ordo = Squamata
subordo = Serpentes
familia = Viperidae
subfamilia = Viperinae
genus = "Macrovipera"
genus_authority = Reuss, 1927
synonyms = * "Macrovipera" - Reuss, 1927McDiarmid 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).] :"Common names: large Palearctic vipers.Spawls S, Branch B. 1995. The Dangerous Snakes of Africa. Ralph Curtis Books. Dubai: Oriental Press. 192 pp. ISBN 0-88359-029-8.] ""Macrovipera" is a genus of venomous vipers that inhabit the semideserts and steppes of North Africa, the Near and Middle East, and the Milos Archipelago in the Aegean Sea. These snakes are responsible for a number of bites in Africa and western Asia every year. They have a reputation for being ill-tempered and can inject a lot of venom, which is why they should be considered as very dangerous.Mallow D, Ludwig D, Nilson G. 2003. True Vipers: Natural History and Toxinology of Old World Vipers. Krieger Publishing Company, Malabar, Florida. 359 pp. ISBN 0-89464-877-2.] Four species are currently recognized.ITIS|ID=634425|taxon="Macrovipera"|year=2006|date=5 August]

Description

Except for "M. schweizeri", these snakes are all capable of exceeding 1.5 m in length.

The head is broad, flat, and distinct from the neck. Dorsally, it is covered with small, irregular keeled scales. The supraoculars are also fragmented or partially divided. There seems to be a lot of variation in the different scale characteristics.

Geographic range

Morocco, Algeria and Tunis in North Africa, east to Pakistan, Kashmir and India, north to the Milos Archipelago in the Aegean Sea (Greece), Armenia and Dagestan (Russia). To the south, there is only one old record from Yemen.

Habitat

Members of this genus are adapted to arid and dry habitats.

Reproduction

All of these species lay eggs (oviparous).

pecies

"*) Not including the nominate subspecies."
^T) Type species.

Taxonomy

The genus "Macrovipera" was created by Theodore Francis A. Reuss (1927), specifically to accommodate "M. lebetina" (the type species). The three other species currently recognized were, at one point, all regarded as subspecies of "M. lebetina". It is now likely that certain subspecies of "M. lebetina" will also be elevated to valid species status in the not too distant future. Regarding the geographic range of "M. lebetina", it is possible that this species is now extinct in Israel.NRDB species|genus=Macrovipera|species=lebetina|date=9 August|year=2007]

ee also

* List of viperine species and subspecies
*
*
* Snakebite

References

External links

* [http://www.herpbreeder.com/worldspecies/Snakes/vipers/macrovipera.htm "Macrovipera"] at [http://www.herpbreeder.com/ Herpbreeder.com] . Accessed 26 September 2006.