:''Common names: Andean forest-pitviper.Campbell JA, Lamar WW. 2004. The Venomous Reptiles of the Western Hemisphere. 2 volumes. Comstock Publishing Associates, Ithaca and London. 870 pp. 1500 plates. .'' ''Bothrops pulcher'' is a venomous pitviper species found in South America. The specific name is Latin, meaning "beautiful", in reference to the color pattern. No

subspecies In biological classification, subspecies is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (morphology), but that can successfully interbreed. Not all species ...

are currently recognized.

Description

A small and moderately slender species, only two lengths are given by Campbell and Lamar (2004): 76.4 cm for a specimen from

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

and 65.9 cm for the

type Type may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Typing, producing text via a keyboard, typewriter, etc. * Data type, collection of values used for computations. * File type * TYPE (DOS command), a command to display contents of a file. * Ty ...

of ''Bothrops alticola'', although the tail was incomplete. The scalation includes 19-23 (usually 21) rows of keeled dorsal scales, 167-178/173-181 ventral scales in males/females and 63-64/53-60

subcaudal scales In snakes, the subcaudal scales are the enlarged plates on the underside of the tail.Wright AH, Wright AA. 1957. Handbook of Snakes. Comstock Publishing Associates (7th printing, 1985). 1105 pp. . These scales may be either single or divided (pair ...

in males/females, with a varying number towards the end of the tail being divided. On the head there are 5-8 keeled intersupraocular scales, 7-9 (usually 7)

supralabial scales In reptiles, the supralabial scales, also called upper-labials, are those scales that border the mouth opening along the upper jaw. They do not include the median scaleWright AH, Wright AA. 1957. Handbook of Snakes. Comstock Publishing Associates ( ...

, the second of which contacts the

prelacunal Lacunal scales are those scales that form the inner border of the loreal pit in crotaline snakes. Usually, these scales are large and also curve outward to form the outer border of the pit. In most cases the pit opening is triangular with one ap ...

, and 8-10

sublabial scales In reptiles, the sublabial scales, also called lower-labials or infralabials, are those scales that border the mouth opening along the lower jaw. They do not include the median scaleWright AH, Wright AA. 1957. ''Handbook of Snakes''. Comstock Publis ...

. The color pattern consists of a greenish yellow or medium to dark green ground color that usually becomes more obscure towards the front of the body. The dorsal pattern is a series of 29 bands or transverse black spots that tend to fuse with each other towards the front part of the body. All of this is overlaid with a pattern of white dorsal keels. The belly is yellow with black mottling that usually increases down the body so that the tail is a uniform dark color. The end of the tail tends to be cream or pink with a rounded terminal spine. On the head, a cheek stripe is present that extends to the angle of the mouth. Above it is a parallel black stripe that runs from the

supraoculars In scaled reptiles, supraocular scales are (enlarged) scales on the crown immediately above the eye.Mallow D, Ludwig D, Nilson G. 2003. True Vipers: Natural History and Toxinology of Old World Vipers. Malabar, Florida: Krieger Publishing Company. ...

to the angle of the jaw. The labial scales are usually a very dark green color without any mottling. The iris is yellow and the tongue black.

Geographic range

Found in South America on the eastern slopes of the Andes from south-central

to southern Ecuador and northern Peru. The

type locality Type locality may refer to: * Type locality (biology) * Type locality (geology) See also * Local (disambiguation) * Locality (disambiguation) {{disambiguation ...

given is "

Quito Quito (; qu, Kitu), formally San Francisco de Quito, is the capital and largest city of Ecuador, with an estimated population of 2.8 million in its urban area. It is also the capital of the province of Pichincha. Quito is located in a valley o ...

" (Ecuador); a mistake according to Peters (1955).

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q2911680 pulcher Fauna of the Andes Snakes of South America Reptiles of Colombia Reptiles of Ecuador Reptiles of Peru Reptiles described in 1862 Taxa named by Wilhelm Peters