Lachesis stenophrys
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Suborder: Serpentes
Family: Viperidae
Genus: Lachesis
Species:
L. stenophrys
Binomial name
Lachesis stenophrys
Cope, 1876
Synonyms[2][3]
  • Lachesis stenophrys
    Cope, 1876
  • Lachesis muta stenophrys
    — Taylor, 1951
  • Lachesis stenophrys
    — Zamudio & Greene, 1997

Lachesis stenophrys, commonly called the Central American bushmaster,[4] is a species of venomous pit viper in the family Viperidae. The species is native to Central America.[3]

Etymology and taxonomy

The specific name, stenophrys, is derived from the Greek words stenos, meaning "narrow", and ophrys, meaning "brow" or "eyebrow".[5] There are no subspecies that are recognized as being valid.[3][6] Campbell and Lamar (2004) also recognized Lachesis acrochorda (García, 1896) as a valid species,[5] which McDiarmid et al. (1999) had treated as a synonym of L. stenophrys.[2] The Reptile Database follows the position of Campbell and Lamar.[3]

Description

Adults of L. stenophrys commonly grow to more than 200 cm (6 feet 6¾ inches) and may exceed 330 cm (10 feet 10 inches) in total length (including tail). Ditmars (1910) reported a specimen from Costa Rica that was 11 feet 4 inches (349 cm). Many accounts exist of much larger specimens, but these are poorly documented. Solórzano (2004) cites historical records that put the maximum length at 360 cm (11 feet 9¾ inches).

It has a broadly rounded head and a snout that is not elevated. Typically, the species has a pronounced middorsal ridge that is most distinct on the last quarter of the body.[5]

The color pattern is darker than that of L. muta.[4]

Geographic range

L. stenophrys is found in Central America in the Atlantic lowlands of southern Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama, as well as the Pacific lowlands of central and eastern Panama. The type locality given is "Sipurio" (Limón Province, Costa Rica).[2]

Habitat

L. stenophrys occurs in tropical rainforest and lower montane wet forest where annual precipitation averages 2,000-4,000 mm (79–157 inches), which is heavy to extremely heavy rainfall. In the drier areas of Nicaragua, it can be found in gallery forests as well as forests that are seasonally dry, but then never far from sources of water. This species is hardly ever encountered outside of old growth forest.[5] It is found at altitudes from sea level to 1,100 m (3,600 ft).[1]

Behavior

L. stenophrys is terrestrial and nocturnal.[1]

Diet

L. stenophrys preys predominately upon spiny rats and other small rodents.[1]

Reproduction

L. stenophrys is oviparous.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Acosta Chaves, V.; Batista, A.; García Rodríguez, A.; Vargas Álvarez, J.; Dwyer, Q. (2021). "Lachesis stenophrys". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2021: e.T203669A2769592. Retrieved 3 February 2022.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. 1 2 3 McDiarmid RW, Campbell JA, Touré TA (1999). Snake Species of the World: A Taxonomic and Geographic Reference, vol. 1. Washington, District of Columbia: Herpetologists' League. 511 pp. ISBN 1-893777-00-6 (series). ISBN 1-893777-01-4 (volume).
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 Lachesis stenophrys at the Reptarium.cz Reptile Database. Accessed 5 September 2015.
  4. 1 2 Mehrtens JM (1987). Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. ISBN 0-8069-6460-X.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Campbell JA, Lamar WW (2004). The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere. 2 volumes. Ithaca and London: Comstock Publishing Associates. 870 pp., 1,500 plates. ISBN 0-8014-4141-2.
  6. ↑ "Lachesis stenophrys". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Retrieved 4 August 2008.

Further reading

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Lachesis stenophrys.
  • Cope ED (1876). "On the Batrachia and Reptilia of Costa Rica. With Notes on the Herpetology and Ichthyology of Nicaragua and Peru". Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia ["1875"] Series 2, 8: 93-183. (Lachesis stenophrys, new species, p. 152).
  • Coralles, Greivin; Meidinger, Robert; Rodríguez, Santos; Chacón, Danilo; Gómez, Aarón (2014). "Reproduction in captivity of the Central American bushmaster (Lachesis stenophrys, Serpentes: Viperidae), in Costa Rica". Cuadernos de Herpetología 28 (2): 137–139.
  • Kane, Daniel; Tapley, Benjamin; Guthrie, Amanda; Sparrow, Sophie; Tahas, Stamatios A.; Michaels, Christopher J. (2022). "Herpetoculture Notes: A novel approach to sexing Lachesis stenophrys (Serpentes: Viperidae) using radiography". Herpetological Review 53 (1): 54–57.
  • Zamudio KR, Greene HW (1997). "Phylogeography of the bushmaster (Lachesis muta: Viperidae): implications for neotropical biogeography, systematics, and conservation". Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 62 (3): 421–442.
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