第 0323 號，共 1 402 號

Rhinoceros viper

Bitis nasicornis

名字的由來： The common name refers to the horn-like scales on the end of its nose.1

可能致命不治療的話可能會害死你。如果牠咬了你，要趕快求救。

蝰蛇

咬吃：肉

對人的危險: 非常危險如果沒有治療，牠可能會害死一個人。

The rhinoceros viper is a large, stout snake with bright colours and two or three horn-like scales on its nose. It lives in forests across West and Central Africa. It is venomous, and its venom is mainly hemotoxic, meaning it attacks the blood and circulation.1

分布在

Forests of West and Central Africa, from Guinea and Liberia to Ghana, and from Central African Republic to Uganda and western Kenya1

非洲

首頁

It mainly lives in forested areas and rarely goes into woodland. It hides by day in leaf litter, holes, around fallen trees or tangled tree roots. It is mainly on the ground but can climb into trees and thickets up to 3 m high, and is sometimes found in shallow pools.1

長度

72 cm 到 1,1 m (2,4 ft 到 3,5 ft)1

最高速度

大約 3,6 km/h（2,2 mph）

在陸地上, 粗略估計

牠吃什麼？

It mainly eats small mammals, and in wetland habitats it also takes toads, frogs and fish. It hunts by ambush, often staying still for long periods while waiting for prey to pass by.1

Rhinoceros viper 的照片 — Rhinoceros viper。照片：Holger Krisp。 CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.

怎麼認出牠

Large and stout, with rough, heavily keeled scales1
Two or three horn-like scales on the end of the nose, the front pair often long1
Series of blue or blue-green oblong markings, each with a lemon-yellow line down the centre, set within black blotches1
Dark crimson triangles down the flanks, bordered with green or blue1
Top of the head blue or green, with a black arrow mark1

常被誤認為： The name horned puff adder is also used for Bitis caudalis (horned adder), which is a different species. Because of this, names can cause confusion, so the name butterfly viper is preferred.1

毒液力量

咬

咬的時候，毒液會從毒牙或牙齒出來。

牠的毒液有什麼作用？

Its venom is mainly hemotoxic, which attacks the circulatory system, destroying tissue and blood vessels and causing internal bleeding. It also has a neurotoxic component, which attacks the nerves. Small doses of the venom can be deadly. In the few detailed reports of human bites, massive swelling was described, which may lead to necrosis (death of tissue).1

牠對人有多危險？

對人的危險: 非常危險如果沒有治療，牠可能會害死一個人。

Because its range is restricted, few bites have been reported and no statistics are available. In 2003 a man in Dayton, Ohio, who kept one as a pet, was bitten and died.1

好消息：醫生有藥（抗毒血清）或治療方法。1

牠害怕時會做什麼？

When approached it often reveals its presence with a very loud hiss, almost a shriek, and it can strike quickly forwards or sideways without coiling first or giving a warning.1

如果牠咬人

讓傷者保持不動和冷靜，讓被咬的手臂或腿保持在和心臟一樣的高度，取下戒指和緊身的東西，並趕快送醫院。

一定要先打緊急電話（112、000、911）。這是一般急救指引，不是醫療建議。急救基本知識

注意安全

絕對不要碰、抓或捉弄野生動物，就算是很小的動物，就算牠看起來在睡覺或已經死了也一樣。
給牠空間。如果遇到了，保持冷靜，慢慢往後退，讓牠自己離開。
如果被牠咬了：保持冷靜，保持不動，打緊急電話（112、000、911）或趕快去醫院。記住牠的樣子，有照片會很有幫助。

牠不是想來抓你。牠用毒液來捕捉食物或保護自己，而且牠更想躲起來。更多安全知識

在世界上的哪裡？

非洲亞洲歐洲北美洲南美洲澳洲與大洋洲

牠有多大？

牠有多長？

跟 2 隻家貓從鼻子接到尾巴一樣長跟 6 根香蕉頭尾相接一樣長可以在 100 秒內跑完 100 公尺（最快的人類需要 9.6 秒）

Rhinoceros viper 跟「你」比起來有多大？

只是在你的瀏覽器裡做算術。什麼都不會儲存，也不會傳送到任何地方。

牠有多快？

一隻陸龜 大約 0,3 km/h (0,19 mph)

Rhinoceros viper 大約 3,6 km/h (2,2 mph)

一個正在走路的人 大約 5 km/h (3,1 mph)

值得知道

小知識

Its scales are so rough that they can cut people who handle a snake that is struggling.1

Its vivid colours break up its outline in the dappled light of the forest floor, so it is very hard to see.1

Its fangs are not large, rarely more than 1.5 cm long, and when not in use they fold up into the roof of its mouth.1

Its bright colours fade quickly after it sheds its skin, as silt from its moist habitat builds up on its rough scales.1

At least one antivenom, called India Antiserum Africa Polyvalent, protects specifically against bites from this species.1

破解迷思

迷思： Its bright colours make it easy to spot in the forest.

真相： Its colours give it excellent camouflage in the dappled light of the forest floor, which can make it almost invisible.1

給毒液專家

學名: Bitis nasicornis
類群: 蝰蛇
家人: Viperidae2
排序: Squamata
各大洲: 非洲
寶寶: It gives birth to live young, between six and 38 in West Africa, in March and April at the start of the rainy season.1
對人的危險: 4 / 5: 非常危險3