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Daboia russelli
A magnificent baby Russel's Viper
Grassy and Open areas in the Indian Sub Continent
At 3 30 am, as I was walking from my college library to my hostel, this is what I saw on the way! A baby Viper!! I was amazed. As my college is situated on a hill in the Sahyadri mountain range on the western coast of India, it is not unusual to spot this here. But it was my first time with this awesome creature. I picked it with a stick, put it in a bucket and released it into the forest nearby! I am so happy
Spotted on Nov 19, 2011
Submitted on Nov 19, 2011
12 Comments
Great spot & I'm pleased to hear that you managed to safely relocate it. People round here tend to kill snakes on sight too, even though we have 32 species but only 4 are venomous. I've educated my closest neighbors to call me if they see a snake in their yard so I can relocate it instead.
My advice several months ago was that if it was Daboia it also had to be russelii since the genus is monotypic. I will defer to the expertise of others more familiar if this is indeed a juvenile Echis carinatus.
Its a saw scaled viper for sure..!
@ctsetan: I shall check for sure.
@mick: Thanks!
Good series and explanation - well done!
You are right, ctsetan. Also here in Brazil, people kill any type of snake they find, poisonous or not. Education is the answer.
Kalpak, I think its a Saw Scaled Viper and not a Russel's viper. :) Please do compare few pics of those two vipers....
But hey, i am happy you relocated the snake :) unlike many people over here, who would straight away bang its head. We seriously need to change our REFLEX towards snakes.
@ Fraizer: Thank you!
Even though the minute I spotted it I knew it was a viper, I was uncertain as to which kind.
I was very cautious in handling the snake.
I came back to my room, googled and was amazed that it was a Russells viper. It is a deadly and adamant snake.
Thanks for your advice!!
I like photo#2 best as a spotting. Since there is only one species in the genus, "russelli", I think it's safe to include that in the scientific name. Kudos for relocating the snake but be careful, even juveniles are venomous (although delivering less toxicity than adults typically) and Russell's vipers are among the top species in terms of the number of fatal bites.
wow!
That's a beautiful snake!
Great spotting - and so nice of you to get it to a better spot.