Lebanon viper
The Lebanon viper ("Montivipera bornmuelleri)" is a species of venomous snake in the subfamily Viperinae of the family Viperidae. The species is native to Western Asia. There are no recognized subspecies. Etymology. The specific name, "bornmuelleri", is in honor of German botanist Joseph Friedrich Nicolaus Bornmüller. Description. "M. bornmuelleri" grows to a maximum total length (including tail) of about , but usually much less. Males tend to be larger than females in some populations. In specimens from Mount Lebanon, the maximum total lengths were for females and for males. The tail accounts for about 7–10% of the total length . Geographic range and habitat. "M. bornmuelleri" is found in high mountain areas in Israel, Lebanon, and Syria. Its preferred natural habitats are cedar forest, shrubland, and alpine grassland. Reproduction. "M. bornmuelleri" is viviparous. Taxonomy. The original syntypes of "M. bornmuelleri" were collected in Lebanon at 1800 m (5,900 ft) and in the Bolkar mountains of western Turkey at 2200 m (7,200 ft) as described by Franz Werner in 1898. In 1922, Werner restricted the type locality to Lebanon in his designation of his specimen as a lectotype, and in 1938 separated out the southern varieties as a separate species ("Daboia  palaestinae"). In 1967 Mertens raised the name "bornmuelleri" to valid species rank for the Lebanese populations, thus leaving the name "xanthina" for all Turkish populations, which arrangement was accepted by in 1976, and agreed with by Nilson and in their 1985 paper. Conservation status. The species "M. bornmuelleri" is classified as Endangered (EN) according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species with the following criteria: B1ab(iii) (v3.1, 2001). This indicates that it is facing a high risk of extinction in the wild because the extent of its occurrence within its geographic range is estimated to be less than 5,000  km² (1,931 sq mi), because its populations are severely fragmented or known to exist at no more than 5 locations, and because a continued decline is observed, inferred or projected in the area, extent and/or quality of its habitat.