Tropidolaemus

Taxobox
name = "Tropidolaemus"

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image_caption = Wagler's viper, "T. wagleri"
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
subphylum = Vertebrata
classis = Reptilia
ordo = Squamata
subordo = Serpentes
familia = Viperidae
subfamilia = Crotalinae
genus = "Tropidolaemus"
genus_authority = Wagler, 1830
synonyms = * "Tropidolaemus" - Wagler, 1830McDiarmid 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: temple vipers.""Tropidolaemus" is a genus of venomous pitvipers found in southern India and Southeast Asia. Currently, two species are recognized and no subspecies.ITIS|ID=634417|taxon=Tropidolaemus|year=2006|date=3 November]

Description

"Tropidolaemus" are sexually dimorphic. Females can attain lengths of up to a meter, but males are typically only average around 75 cm. They have a distinctly broad, triangular shaped head and a relatively thin body.

They are found in a wide variety of colors and patterns, which often referred to as "phases". Some sources even classify the different phases as subspecies. Phases vary greatly from having a black or brown coloration as a base, with orange and yellow banding to others having a light green as the base color, with yellow or orange banding, and many variations therein.

Geographic range

Southern India and Southeast Asia.

Behavior

These species are primarily arboreal, and are excellent climbers. They spend most of their time nearly motionless, in wait for prey to pass by. They may be diurnal or nocturnal, with their activity period depending on the temperature.Mehrtens JM. 1987. Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. ISBN 0-8069-6460-X.]

Feeding

The diet includes small mammals, birds, lizards and frogs.

Reproduction

The average litter consists of between twelve and fifteen young, with the neonates measuring 12-15 cm in length.

pecies

^T) Type species.

Taxonomy

The two species here were once classified as "Trimeresurus", but were given their own genus due to distinct morphological characteristics.

One new species, "T. laticinctus", was described recently by Kuch, Gumprecht and Melaun (2007). It is found on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. The type locality is "between L. Posso and Tomini Bay, Celebes" [= between Lake Poso and Tomini Bay, Province of Sulawesi Tengah, Indonesia."NRDB species|genus=Tropidolaemus|species=laticinctus|date=12 December|year=2007] Kuch U, Gumprecht A & Melaun C. 2007. A new species of Temple Pitviper (Tropidolaemus Wagler, 1830) from Sulawesi, Indonesia (Squamata: Viperidae: Crotalinae). Zootaxa 1446: 1–20.]

ee also

* List of crotaline species and subspecies
*
*
* Snakebite

References

External links

*
* [http://www.kingsnake.com/viper/history.html The Wagler Viper Page] at [http://www.kingsnake.com/ Kingsnake.com] . Accessed 27 September 2006.
* [http://www.whozoo.org/Anlife2002/ericacas/EAC_PitViper.html WhoZoo: Wagler's Pit Viper] at [http://www.whozoo.org/ WhoZoo] . Accessed 27 September 2006.