Chinese nosed viper
| Chinese nosed viper | ||||||||||||
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Chinese nosed viper ( Deinagkistrodon acutus ), young animal |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Deinagkistrodon | ||||||||||||
| Gloyd , 1979 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the species | ||||||||||||
| Deinagkistrodon acutus | ||||||||||||
| ( Günther , 1888) |
The Chinese nosed viper ( Deinagkistrodon acutus ), also Chinese copper head , is a pit viper (Crotalinae) and belongs to the monotypical genus Deinagkistrodon within the family of vipers (Viperidae) . The species was first scientifically described in 1888 by the German zoologist Albert Günther .
features
The Chinese nosed viper is a large viper and appears only slightly stocky, compared to some other vipers it is rather slim. It reaches a typical body length of about 1.3 meters and is a maximum of 1.6 meters long. The head is clearly separated from the neck and is triangular, broad and noticeably flattened. The tip of the snout is sharply pointed and raised in the form of a soft structure made of horn scales, the common German name "Nasenotter" also refers to this characteristic. The scales around the mouth are very large, and the top of the head also has large scale shields. The eyes shimmer golden and have vertically slit-shaped pupils. The basic color of the body ranges from clay-brown to gray to red-brown. The entire back and the flanks are drawn with darker patterns, some of which open up from the spine to the left and right like hourglass-shaped saddle spots. In their center above the middle of the body, these spots are black, the edge is also black or dark red-brown towards the belly and the interior of the pattern is kept in a darker shade of brown and can be lightened locally in shades of orange. Black spots appear below this pattern. The scales on the ventral side are speckled white and dark.
The top of the head is colored dark brown or copper. A dark, thin strip runs from the tip of the snout to the eye, which continues in a wider band between the eye and the jaw joint. The mouth is light, whitish or yellowish. With increasing age, the entire animal becomes darker and darker, and the transitions between individual patterns are then barely recognizable. Newly hatched Chinese nasal otters in particular are very contrasting pink-gray and brown.
Pholidosis
Looking at the snake scaling (pholidosis) of the Chinese nasal viper, there are 21 (rarely 23) rows of hump-like keeled back scales, conspicuously large plates on the top of the head and 7 (rarely 6) upper lip plates ( scutum supralabiale ; 4th and 3rd largest ) around the middle of the body ). Males have 157 to 165 ventral shields ( Scutum ventrale ) and between 53 and 61 under tail shields ( Scutum subcaudale ), females have between 162 and 174 ventral shields and 61 to 65 under tail shields.
Occurrence
The distribution area of the Chinese nosed viper stretches roughly across northern Vietnam , the People's Republic of China and central and southern Taiwan . In China in particular, the species has been identified in the provinces of Anhui , Jiangxi , Guizhou and Sichuan , and there are also said to be occurrences in Yunnan , Hubei , Hunan , Zhejiang , Fujian and Guangdong , which are not proven. A population is also suspected in Laos . The viper prefers to live in drier and rocky landscapes, wooded slopes, scree slopes and stony gorges. It hangs between stones and boulders, under bushes or even under wood. It is often found close to bodies of water. As a cultural follower , she also lives in close proximity to people and their homes. In gardens she likes to hide under metal sheets. The Chinese nosed viper occurs in wooded mountains at heights of up to 1500 meters above sea level .
Way of life
The activity phases of the nasal vipers, which are true to their location, depend on the ambient temperature. Especially in spring and autumn, when the nights are still mild, the Viper is diurnal. However, over the summer you can hardly see them during the day. It keeps curled up and perfectly camouflaged in crevices in the rock, in leaf litter, in the vegetation, under pieces of bark or roots, in gardens under planks or less often in a house under a cupboard and then takes on the light and warmth in the evening, for example on a slope The sinking sun still draws energy and only becomes active at night. She strictly avoids high temperatures. The Chinese nosed viper is a distinct ground dweller. If she is startled, she may also withdraw into a body of water as a good swimmer. Especially when cornered or if you suddenly surprise her, she bites quickly.
Depending on the region and the temperatures, the Chinese nosed viper hibernates during the cold months in a dry and frost-protected hiding place, such as in caves, wood piles, rock niches or similar places. It only retreats to winter quarters when temperatures are regularly well below 10 ° C.
nutrition
The Chinese noser feeds on small mammals, for example rodents such as rats or house mice , birds , frogs , including toads , lizards and smaller snakes . The prey is not actively sought, rather the snake relies on a chance encounter with a prey animal or a scent trail.
Reproduction
The mating season begins with the rising temperatures after the winter dormancy, around March or April. The males then start looking for females willing to mate. When they encounter a female sex partner, they wrap them and carry their hemipenis to transfer the sperm to the egg into the cloaca of the female one. The development of the snake embryos already progresses in the womb. A few weeks after mating , the female lays up to 20 eggs in a moist and protected place, for example under leaves, in moss or the like, and guards them. Under favorable climatic conditions with temperatures around 30 ° C, the young snakes hatch after around 30 days. The young snakes have a body length of around 15 to less than 30 cm when they hatch.
toxicology
Snake venom and poisonous effects
The Chinese nosed viper has an extremely powerful snake venom . The entire venom apparatus is already fully developed when the young snakes hatch and the poison is just as potent as that of the adult vipers, only the amount produced differs between young and old snakes. In the case of the Chinese nose viper, the poison is a mixture of different active substances that primarily intervene in the mechanisms of blood coagulation and thus can lead to thromboses and embolisms . It is also very hemorrhagic, damaging erythrocytes (red blood cells) and destroying the walls of blood vessels, which can lead to severe internal bleeding. In addition, the snake's venom contains a cytotoxin , which can generally destroy cells and cause tissue to die.
Symptoms
A human bite is often unexpected, for example when the snake is hiding under a board or something similar and someone wants to work with it. First of all, there is significant pain and bleeding from the bite wound very quickly , then the bitten limb swells strongly and often up to the trunk. Within the first three to five days after a bite, about 10% of the bite victims develop necrosis due to the cytotoxic effect , especially at the bite site. The tissue of the end links of the hands and feet can also die off. Systemic symptoms throughout the body include nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Fatal embolisms are possible due to a severe disruption of blood clotting. In 40% of the recorded bite victims, untreated spontaneous bleeding and several small bleeding under the skin ( petechiae ), which can also be caused by a lack of platelets ( thrombopenia ), occur. In the distribution area of the Chinese nosed viper, it is known by the nickname "Hundred-pace snake", in German "Hundred-pace snake". This is related to the supposed number of steps you can take after a bite before you die from it. The Chinese nosed viper is a very poisonous viper, which is held responsible for many snake bites with fatal consequences every year in its homeland. In Taiwan, is lethality (mortality) after a bite of the Chinese nose Notter up to 24%.
Therapy of the poison bite
It is important for first aiders to calm down a victim of the bite, if possible to inform an emergency doctor and to let the bitten person take off all constricting objects (e.g. rings, wristwatches ...) because of the swelling that occurs quickly. Under no circumstances may the bite site be treated at your own risk. Then the wound must be medically disinfected and targeted antibiotics are given. In addition, protection against tetanus by vaccination must be ensured and the patient must be observed for at least one day, especially with regard to local symptoms and fibrinogen levels . In Taiwan, the antiserum Agkistrodon Taiwan Nat. Inst. Prev. Med. Developed, which in particular normalizes blood clotting. As required, 20 to 40 mg are injected intravenously and combined prophylactically with cortisone and antihistamine . If access to the antiserum is not possible, the antiserum for the Malay moccasin otter ( Calloselasma rhodostoma ) can be used as a substitute .
swell
Single receipts
- ↑ Integrated Taxonomic Information System: Deinagkistrodon
- ↑ Trutnau: Venomous snakes . Ulmer Verlag, 1998. ISBN 3-8001-7371-9 .
- ↑ 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).
- ↑ Reptiles.de: Chinese Nasenotter ( Memento of the original from July 11th, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Winchell, S. 2003. The diverse world of Chinese snakes. Reptilia (Münster) 8 (6): 20-29
- ↑ Armed Forces Pest Management Board: Deinagkistrodon acutus
- ↑ Chris Mattison: Encyclopedia of the snakes , blv Verlag, ISBN 978-3835403604 , page 223-224.
literature
- Mark O'Shea: Venomous snakes. All species in the world in their habitats. Franckh-Kosmos Verlag, Stuttgart 2006, ISBN 3-440-10619-5 .
- Thomas Junghanss, Mauro Bodio: Emergency manual poison animals. Thieme, Stuttgart 1996.
- Julian White, Jurg Meier: Handbook of clinical toxicology of animal venoms and poisons. CRC Press, Boca Raton 1995.
