Protobothrops jerdonii, also known commonly as Jerdon's pitviper,[1] the yellow-speckled pit viper, and the oriental pit viper, is a species of venomous snake in the subfamily Crotalinae of the family Viperidae. The species is native to India, Nepal, Myanmar, China, and Vietnam. Three subspecies are recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.
The specific name, jerdonii, is in honor of British herpetologist Thomas C. Jerdon, who collected the type series.[2]
The subspecific name, bourreti, is in honour of French herpetologist René Léon Bourret.[2]
Males of P. jerdonii grow to a maximum total length of 835mm, which includes a tail length of 140mm; females grow to 990mm, with a tail length of 160mm.[3]
Scalation: dorsal scales in 21 longitudinal rows at midbody (rarely 23); snout length a little more than twice diameter of eye; head above, except for large internasals and supraoculars, covered by small, unequal, smooth scales that are feebly imbricate or juxtaposed; first labial completely separated from nasal scales by a suture; internasals separated by 1–2 small scales; 6–9 small scales in line between supraoculars; 7–8 upper labials, third and fourth beneath eye, in contact with subocular or separated by at most a single series of small scales; ventrals: males 164–188, females 167–193; subcaudals: males 50–78, females 44–76.[3]
P. jerdonii is found in northeastern India, Nepal, through northern Burma to southwestern China and Vietnam. The type locality given by Günther is "Khassya" (=Khasi Hills, India).
The preferred natural habitats of P. jerdonii are forest, shrubland, and grassland, at altitudes of .
Adults of P. jerdonii prey predominately upon rats, while juveniles prey upon frogs of the families Ranidae and Rhacophoridae.
The mode of reproduction of P. jerdonii has been referred to as viviparous and as ovoviviparous. Litter size is five to eight newborns.
| Subspecies | Taxon author | Common name[4] | Geographic range |
|---|---|---|---|
| P. j. bourreti | (Klemmer, 1963) | Bourret's pitviper | Northwestern Vietnam (in the provinces of Lào Cai and Lai Châu, and possibly also in adjacent China (Yunnan). |
| P. j. jerdonii | (Günther, 1875) | Jerdon's pitviper | Southwestern China (in the provinces of southern Xizang (Tibet), western Sichuan and Yunnan), northeastern India, Bangladesh, Burma (Chin and Kachin state), and northeastern Nepal. |
| P. j. xanthomelas | (Günther, 1889) | red spotted pitviper | Central and southern China (in the provinces of Henan, Shaanxi, Gansu, Sichuan, Guizhou, Hubei and Guangxi) and northeastern India(Arunachal Pradesh).[5] |
A trinomial authority in parentheses indicates that the subspecies was originally described in a genus other than Protobothrops.