As of 2003, one death has been caused by a captive Rhino Viper. The complications of being bitten however can be life-threatening, as its venom is neurotoxic and hemotoxic. Its mild disposition means that despite its significant venom – it is one of the most dangerous snakes in Africa – it rarely bites, and will prefer to hiss or flee when disturbed. The Rhino Viper bears live young, instead of laying eggs. It will predate on rodents, other small mammals, frogs, toads and fish. The Rhino Viper is an ambush predator that takes advantage of rodent trails, hiding in leaf litter and camouflaging well, especially in dappled light. It is a nocturnal, terrestrial snake found in rainforests, swamps and plantations in West and Central Africa, however a semi-prehensile tail allows it to climb successfully into trees and shrubs, and it can also be found in watery environments. It’s most similar to the Gaboon Viper, but its velvet-like pattern is more colourful. After this, silt accretes onto its scales and dims its colouration. Usually around 80 centimetres in length but can grow to as long as 1.3 metres. It is brightest and at its most vivid after shedding its skin. The Rhino Viper, also known as the River Jack, Butterfly Viper and specifically Bitis nasicornis (for specificity) is a brightly coloured, stout viper known for its nasal horns. Holding this specimen by the tail is not the safest move either, as due to its slightly prehensile tail, it can easily fling itself around to strike.Flash in the pan. ![]() ![]() The beautiful colors work as an excellent camouflage on the rain forest floor. ![]() The poor snake though could not live up to the fang size of its relative, having small fangs of only about 1.5 cm, but is also able to strike quickly forwards as well as sideways, even without coiling. Rhinoceros viper / Bitis nasicornis The Rhinoceros viper is a large, heavily build highly venomous snake species from Africa. Luckily, just as it’s cousin, it has a mild temperament, though less so than the Gaboon, and bites are very rare, the snake usually giving out quite the lengthy hiss if disturbed, and what a his it is, as it is known to have the loudest hiss of any African snake. Now like the Gaboon, this snake also has a high venom yield, but only a small amount of the Rhinoceros Viper’s venom can be deadly to people. In One of my previous blogs, I discussed the Gaboon Adder, eventually discussing its venom. This specimen is rather small, with its length usually staying under a meter long, usually around 70 – 90 cm, though some have been known to grow to 1.3 metres in length.īeing mostly a land dweller, this nocturnal serpent mostly hunts rodents, but has been found in aquatic environments, as well as occasionally in trees, made possible by its somewhat prehensile tail, also feeding upon frogs and fish. They are called so because of the scales that produce horns on its head. Head shape and pattern are quite similar, but the Rhinoceros Viper remains more vibrant in colour, as well as it has 2 to 3 unique little horns at the tip of its snout, that are more prominent than that of the Gaboon. Bitis nasicornis snakes are known by the common name: rhinoceros viper. Living Zoology is making a big effort to travel around the world, film and photograph snakes, educate people and show them that they can live in harmony with snakes. ![]() Rhinoceros viper is indeed a stunning snake, perfectly adapted to life in the rain forests of Central Africa. I’m sure I don’t need to go into too much depth about where it got its name from, as the little horn-like protrusions give it away, I would say.Ĭoming from the Western and Central parts of Africa, this snake inhabits rainforests and swamps, enjoying lovely humid and wet environments.īeing from the same family (Viperidae) and genus (Bitis) as the Gaboon Adder, it explains why I enjoy this species just as much! They share many similar visual qualities, as well as they are both viviparous, meaning the young develop within the body in embryos, like most mammals, with a lack of eggs. Many people consider this snake as the most beautiful one of them all. The first picture I saw of this specimen, the colour looked like that of an African beaded artwork, the bright colours resembling as much! This creature is by far one of my favourite when it comes to appearances! Gorgeous bold colours from blues and greens, to reds and yellows, accompanied by some black to make the colour even more striking.
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