Appendix E

DESCRIPTIONS OF VENOMOUS SNAKES

CROTALIDAE

E-15. The crotalids, or pit vipers (Figure E-5), may be either slender or thick-bodied. Their heads are usually much wider than their necks. These snakes take their name from the deep pit located between the eye and the nostril. They are usually brown with dark blotches but some kinds are green.

Figure E-5 Positive Identification of Pit Vipers

E-16. Rattlesnakes, copperheads, cottonmouths, and several species of dangerous snakes from Central and South America, Asia, China, and India fall into the pit viper group. The pit is a highly sensitive organ capable of picking up the slightest temperature variance. Most pit vipers are nocturnal. They hunt for food at night with the aid of these specialized pits that let them locate prey in total darkness. Rattlesnakes are the only pit vipers that possess a rattle at the tip of the tail.

E-17. India has about twelve species of these snakes. You find them in trees or on the ground in all types of terrain. The tree snakes are slender; the ground snakes are heavy-bodied. All are dangerous.

E-18. China has a pit viper similar to the cottonmouth found in North America. You find it in the rocky areas of the remote mountains of South China. It reaches a length of 1.4 meters
(5 feet) but is not vicious unless irritated. You can also find a small pit viper, about 45 centimeters (18 inches) long, on the plains of eastern China. It is too small to be dangerous to a man wearing shoes.

E-19. There are about twenty-seven species of rattlesnakes in the United States and Mexico. They vary in color and may or may not have spots or blotches. Some are small but others, such as the diamondbacks, may grow to 2.5 meters (8 feet) long.

E-20. There are five kinds of rattlesnakes in Central and South America, but only the tropical rattlesnake is widely distributed. The rattle on the tip of the tail is sufficient identification for a rattlesnake.

E-21. Most will try to escape without a fight when approached, but there is always a chance one will strike at a passerby. They do not always give a warning; they may strike first and rattle afterwards or not at all.

E-22. The genus Trimeresurus is a subgroup of the crotalidae. These are Asian pit vipers. They are normally tree-loving snakes, but some live on the ground. They basically have the same characteristics of the crotalidae—slender build and very dangerous. Their bites usually are on the upper extremities—head, neck, and shoulders. Their venom is largely hemotoxic.