Palestine Viper

Daboia palaestinae, also known as the Palestine viper, is a viper species endemic to the Levant. Like all vipers, it is venomous. It is considered a leading cause of snakebite within its range. No subspecies are currently recognized.

Description

It grows to an average total length (body + tail) of 70 to 90 cm (28 to 35 in), with a maximum total length of 130 cm (51 in). The head is triangular, distinct from the neck and covered by small scales. The upper part of the body is colored by large dark rhomboid blotches sometimes forming a zig-zag pattern.

The harmless coin-marked snake, which lives in the same areas as the Palestine viper, resembles it in length, coloration and defensive behavior, to the extent that people frequently get confused between them. This is probably a case of Batesian mimicry.

Geographic range

It is found in northern and central Israel, Palestine, western Syria, northwestern Jordan, and Lebanon. In 2017 a specimen was found in Turkey. Mallow et al. (2003) describe the range as relatively restricted, with the distribution being concentrated in the Mediterranean coastal plains to the inland hills of Lebanon and Israel, along with the adjoining regions of Syria and Jordan.

The type locality given is "Haifa, Israel".

Conservation status

This species is assessed as Least Concern according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It was given this status due to its relatively wide distribution, the fact that it is found in a wide range of habitats, its presumed large population, and because it is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a more threatened category. The population trend is unknown.

Taxonomy

The classification of this species has resulted in much taxonomic controversy. Before Franz Werner (1938), this snake was included in Montivipera xanthina, and subsequently synonymized with V. lebetina by Boulenger (1896). Mertens (1952) moved it back to M. xanthina as a subspecies, and more recently a number of authorities, including Obst (1983) and Mallow et al. (2003) have included it as part of the genus Daboia. The result is that many studies related to this medically significant species have been published under different scientific names.

Venom

The LD50 of this viper's venom is 0.34 mg/kg. Since the second half of the 20th century there is an antivenom for this snake's venom, which is considered safe and effective. But occasionally people still die from this snake's bite. The mortality rate of people who were bitten is 0.5% to 2%. At least 7 people were reported to die of this snake's bite in the 21st century in Israel so far.

The venom includes at least four families of pharmacologically active compounds: (i) neurotoxins; (ii) hemorrhagins; (iii) angioneurin growth factors; and (iv) different types of integrin inhibitors.

Reproduction