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iLachesis
Image:Lachesis muta muta.jpg Bushmaster, L. muta
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Subphylum: Vertebrata Class: Reptilia Order: Squamata Suborder: Serpentes Family: Viperidae Subfamily: Crotalinae Genus: Lachesis Daudin, 1803
Synonyms
Lachesis - Daudin, 1803 Trigonocephalus - Oppel, 1811 Trigalus - Rafinesque, 1815 Cophias - Merrem, 1820<ref name="McD99">McDiarmid 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).</ref>

Common names: bushmasters.

Lachesis is a genus of venomous pit vipers found in the remote, forested areas in Central and South America.<ref name="McD99"/> Three species are currently recognized.<ref name="ITIS">Lachesis (TSN 209555). Integrated Taxonomic Information System. Accessed on 25 October 2006.</ref>

Contents 1 Description 2 Geographic range 3 Reproduction 4 Venom 5 Species 6 Cited references 7 Other references 8 External links

[edit] Description

Adults vary in length from 2 to 2.5 m, although and some may grow to as much as 3 m. The largest known specimen was just under 3.65 m, making it the longest venomous snake in the Western Hemisphere. This is also the longest viper, though not the heaviest (it is surpassed by the gaboon viper and the Eastern diamondback rattlesnake).

[edit] Geographic range

Found in Central and South America.<ref name="McD99"/>

[edit] Reproduction

Lachesis is the only neo-tropical pit viper that lays eggs: about a dozen in the average clutch. The female is reported to remain with the eggs during incubation and may aggressively defend the nest if approached. The hatchlings average 30 cm in length and are more colorful than the adults.

[edit] Venom

The reputation of this genus is undeserved, probably made up by people who thought that their large size also called for a formidable reputation. While certainly capable of delivering a lethal bite, it is no more capable of doing so than other species.<ref name="Meh87">Mehrtens JM. 1987. Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. ISBN 0-8069-6460-X.</ref>

[edit] Species

Species<ref name="ITIS"/>	Authority<ref name="ITIS"/>	Subsp.*<ref name="ITIS"/>	Common name	Geographic range<ref name="McD99"/>
L. melanocephala	Solórzano and Cerdas, 1986	0	Black-headed bushmaster	Costa Rica: Pacific versant of southeastern Puntarenas province from near sea level to about 1500 m.
L. mutaT	(Linnaeus, 1766)	1	South American bushmaster	South America in the equatorial forests east of the Andes: Colombia, eastern Ecuador, Peru, northern Bolivia, eastern and southern Venezuela, Guyana, Surinam, French Guiana and much of northern Brazil. It also occurs on the island of Trinidad.<ref name="CTT">List of Snakes of Trinidad and Tobago at Republic of Trinidad and Tobago Biodiversity Clearing House. Accessed 6 November 2006.</ref>
L. stenophrys	Cope, 1875	0	Central American bushmaster	In Central America it is found in the Atlantic lowlands of southern Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama, as well as the Pacific lowlands of central and eastern Panama. In South America it occurs in the Pacific lowlands of Colombia and northwestern Ecuador, the Carribbean coast of northwestern Colombia and inland along the Magdalena and Cauca river valleys.

*) Not including the nominate subspecies (typical form).
^T) Type species.

[edit] Cited references

[edit] Other references

[edit] External links

• Genus Lachesis at the EMBL Reptile Databasefr:Lachesis