Bothrops muriciensis explained

Bothrops muriciensis, also known as Jararaca, Jararaca-de-Alagoas, Jararacuçu in Portuguese,^[1] is an endangered species of pit viper which is named after the forest it is known to inhabit, Mata de Murici, in Alagoas in the north east of Brazil.^[2] As with all vipers, B. muriciensis is venomous.^[3]

Description

Bothrops muriciensis is distinguishable by its 13-14 dark triangular or trapezoidal markings, and lack of markings between them, as well as the mouth and throat colouring being dark black in males and white in females. These snakes have been discovered up to (snout-vent length).^[4]

Endangered status

Bothrops muriciensis is considered one of the top 30 most endangered viper species, and are listed on the Brazilian Red List as endangered,^[5] as well as globally on the IUCN Red List. Knowledge of the species is lacking and up until 2012 only 9 individuals were known, all close to the first area the species was found in.^[6]

Reproduction

Bothrops muriciensis reproduces sexually, with ovoviviparous birth.

Notes and References

1. Gonzalez R. C. et al. 2020. Lista dos Nomes Populares dos Répteis no Brasil – Primeira Versão. Herpetologia Brasileira 9 (2): 121 – 214
2. Filho, G.A.P. et al. 2023. Composition, Species Richness, and Conservation of the Reptiles of the Highly Threatened Northern Brazilian Atlantic Forest. In: Pereira Filho, G.A., França, F.G.R., Alves, R.R.N., Vasconcellos, A. (eds) Animal Biodiversity and Conservation in Brazil's Northern Atlantic Forest. Springer, Cham
3. Web site: Bothrops muriciensis . 2024-07-28 . The Reptile Database.
4. Ferrarezzi, H. & Freire, E.M.X. 2001. New species of Bothrops Wagler, 1824 from the Atlantic forest of northeastern Brazil (Serpentes, Viperidae, Crotalinae). Boletim do Museu Nacional, Nova Serie, Zoologia 440: 1-10
5. Maritz . Bryan . Penner . Johannes . Martins . Marcio . Crnobrnja-Isailović . Jelka . Spear . Stephen . Alencar . Laura R.V. . Sigala-Rodriguez . Jesús . Messenger . Kevin . Clark . Rulon W. . Soorae . Pritpal . Luiselli . Luca . Jenkins . Chris . Greene . Harry W. . Dec 2016 . Identifying global priorities for the conservation of vipers . Biological Conservation . en . 204 . 94–102 . 10.1016/j.biocon.2016.05.004. 2016BCons.204...94M .
6. Dubeux . Marcos Jorge Matias . Araújo Neto . José Vieira de . Triburcio . Ingrid Carolline Soares . Lisboa . Barnagleison Silva . Torquato . Selma . Freitas . Marco Antônio de . Freire . Eliza Maria Xavier . Guarnieri . Míriam Camargo . Mott . Tamí . 2022-05-30 . A "hotspot" within a hotspot: the reptiles of the Estação Ecológica and Área de Proteção Ambiental de Murici, Atlantic Forest of northeastern Brazil . Biota Neotropica . en . 22 . 2 . e20221337 . 10.1590/1676-0611-BN-2022-1337 . 1676-0611. free .