Spider-tailed horned viper
The spider-tailed horned viper is a venomous snake with a tail tip that looks like a spider. It lives only in the mountains of western Iran and the nearby eastern part of Iraq. It wiggles its tail to lure birds close enough to catch.1

Jak ho poznat
- The scales above each eye rise up into small horns.1
- About 16 to 17 scales sit between the horns.1
- The bulb-shaped tail tip is bordered by long, drooping scales that look like spider legs.1
- The scales on the body are rougher than those of other species in its genus.1
- It has 15 pairs of subcaudal scales (the scales on the underside of the tail).1
Často se plete s: It looks very similar to other Pseudocerastes vipers in the region, especially around the head. The unusual, spider-like tail tip is the feature that sets it apart.1
Síla jedu
Jed vychází jedovými zuby nebo zuby, když kouše.
Co dělá jeho jed?
Its venom mainly acts as a cytotoxin, which destroys cells across a wide variety of cell types, and it has minor neurotoxic effects, which attack the nerves. It is a procoagulant, meaning it makes blood clot, and reports describe clotting in about 13 seconds. The venom affects birds most strongly, and also affects mammals and amphibians. A 2021 study by Brouw found it has a coagulant effect on humans and affects Factor X, a protein needed for blood clotting.1
Jak je nebezpečné pro lidi?
Nebezpečí pro lidi: VážnéKousnutí potřebuje lékaře. Úmrtí jsou velmi vzácná.No human bite has ever been recorded in the wild. How severe its effects would be on people is not known.1
Když kousne
- Udržuj postiženého v klidu a bez pohybu, drž pokousanou končetinu ve výšce srdce, sundej prsteny a všechno, co škrtí, a rychle se dostaňte do nemocnice.
Vždy nejdřív zavolej na tísňovou linku (112, 000, 911). Jde o obecné rady k první pomoci, ne o lékařskou radu. Základy první pomoci
Buď v bezpečí
- Nikdy se nedotýkej divokého zvířete, nechytej ho a neprovokuj, ani malé, a ani když vypadá, že spí nebo je mrtvé.
- Nech mu prostor. Když ho potkáš, zůstaň v klidu, pomalu couvej a nech ho jít svou cestou.
- Když tě kousne: zůstaň v klidu, nehýbej se, zavolej na tísňovou linku (112, 000, 911) nebo se rychle dostaň do nemocnice. Zapamatuj si, jak vypadalo, fotka pomůže.
Nejde po tobě. Jed používá k lovu potravy nebo k obraně a mnohem radši se schová. Víc o bezpečí
Jak je velké?
Jak je dlouhé?
dlouhé jako 3 banánů za sebou
100 metrů za 110 s (nejrychlejší člověk potřebuje 9,6)Spider-tailed horned viper: jak je velké ve srovnání s TEBOU?
Jen matematika ve tvém prohlížeči. Nic se neukládá ani nikam neposílá.
Jak je rychlé?
Fakta
Its tail is moved in a figure-of-eight pattern, and it moves faster when birds are nearby. Field studies have confirmed that this is a lure and not random movement.1
Footage of it luring migrating birds appears in the Asia episode of the BBC series Seven Worlds, One Planet, narrated by David Attenborough.1
A digested lark was found in the stomach of one of the specimens used to describe the species, supporting the idea that the tail lures birds.1
Its tail tip is a form of aggressive mimicry, where a predator looks like something else to attract its prey.1
Several other snakes, such as the sidewinder and the green tree python, also use the tip of their tail as a lure, but none has the elongated scales that look like arthropod legs.1
A specimen collected in 1968 was first identified as a Persian horned viper. It was only recognised as a separate species and described in 2006.1
Lovec mýtů
Mýtus: The strange tail tip was caused by a parasite, a deformity or a tumour.
Pravda: Early specimens were thought to have a damaged tail tip. In fact, the spider-like tail is a natural feature that the snake uses to lure birds.1
Odkud fakta pocházejí
- Spider-tailed horned viper (Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0))
- Pseudocerastes urarachnoides (iNaturalist): jména a zařazení.
- Venom Wiki: úroveň nebezpečí, typická velikost a odhad rychlosti jsou naše vlastní. Podívej se, jak je určujeme: Jak hodnotíme nebezpečí.
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Kousnutí
