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Atheris anisolepis MOCQUARD, 1887

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Higher TaxaViperidae, Viperinae, Colubroidea, Caenophidia, Alethinophidia, Serpentes, Squamata (snakes)
Subspecies 
Common NamesE: Mayombe Bush-Viper 
SynonymAtheris anisolepis MOCQUARD 1887: 89
Atheris laeviceps BOETTGER 1887: 651
Atheris laeviceps — SCHMIDT 1923: 145
Atheris squamigera anisolepis — BOGERT 1940
Atheris laeviceps — TRAPE & ROUX-ESTÈVE 1995: 45
Atheris anisolepis — BROADLEY 1998: 128
Atheris anisolepis — WALLACH et al. 2014: 60
Atheris laeviceps — TRAPE 2023: 254 
DistributionS Gabon, S Republic of Congo (Brazzaville), W Democratic Republic of the Congo (Zaire)

Type locality: Alima [River], Leketi, Congo.  
Reproductionviviparous (not imputed, fide Zimin et al. 2022). Juveniles are usually found in July-August. Gestation is ca. 7 months. 
TypesLectotype: MNHN-RA 1886.0242; paralectotype: MNHN-RA 1886.0243 (Leketi), MNHN-RA 1886.0368 (Franceville, Gabon) 
DiagnosisAdditional details, e.g. a detailed description or comparisons (3205 characters), are available for collaborators and contributors. Please contact us for details. 
CommentVenomous!

Subspecies and synonymy: The name was placed in the synonymy of A. squamigera by Boulenger(1896), but was revived as a subspecies by Bogert(1940) and again removed from synonymy with A. squamigera by BROADLEY 1998 but then again synonymized by LAWSON & USTACH (2000). Collet & Trape 2020 discuss the possibility that Atheris laeviceps BOETTGER 1887 may have priority over Atheris anisolepis MOCQUARD 1887.

Distribution: Not in Angola fide Marques et al. 2018. The type locality was originally given as “near the river Gabon, Guinea”.

Habitat: fully arboreal (Harrington et al. 2018).

Diet: frogs, lizards, small mammals, possibly newly hatched birds. 
References
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  • Boulenger, G. A. 1897. A list of reptiles and batrachians from the Congo Free State, with the description of two new snakes. Ann. Mag. nat. Hist. (6) 19: 276-281 - get paper here
  • Broadley, D.G. 1996. A review of the tribe Atherini (Serpentes: Viperidae), with the descriptions of two new genera. African Journal of Herpetology 45: 40-48. - get paper here
  • Broadley, D.G. 1998. A review of the genus Atheris Cope (Serpentes: Viperidae), with the description of a new species from Uganda. The Herpetological Journal 8: 117-135. - get paper here
  • Burger, M.; Branch, W.R. & Channing, A. 2004. Amphibians and Reptiles of Monts Doudou, Gabon: Species Turnover Along an Elevational Gradient. California Academy of Sciences Memoir 28: 145–186
  • Chifundera, K. 1990. Snakes of Zaire and their bites. Afr. Stud. Monogr. (Kyoto) 10(3): 137-157.
  • Chippaux, Jean-Philippe & Kate Jackson 2019. Snakes of Central and Western Africa. Johns Hopkins University Press, 448 pp. [detaileld review in HR 51 (1): 161] - get paper here
  • Chirio, L. & Lebreton, M. 2007. Atlas des reptiles du Cameroun. MNHN, IRD, Paris 688 pp.
  • COLLET, Marcel & Jean-Francois TRAPE 2020. Une nouvelle espèce du genre Atheris Cope, 1862, de la province de l’Équateur en République Démocratique du Congo (Squamata: Viperidae). Bull. Soc. Herp. France 173: 27-40 - get paper here
  • Cope, E.D. 1860. Catalogue of the venomous serpents in the Museum of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, with notes on the families, genera and species. Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 1859: 332-347 - get paper here
  • Cope, E.D. 1862. Notes upon some reptiles of the Old World. Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 14: 337-344 - get paper here
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  • Ernst, R. & Rödel, M. O. 2002. A new Atheris species (Serpentes: Viperidae), from Taï National Park, Ivory Coast. The Herpetological Journal 12: 55-61 - get paper here
  • Fischer, J. G. 1888. Über zwei neue Schlangen und einen neuen Laubfrosch von Kamerun. Jahrb. Hamburg. Wiss. Anst. 5: 1-10 - get paper here
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  • Herrmann, H. W.; Joger, U.; Lenk, P. & Wink, M. 1999. Morphological and molecular phylogenies of viperines: conflicting evidence? Kaupia (Darmstadt) (8): 21-30 - get paper here
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  • LAWSON, D. P., B. P. NOONAN & P. C. USTACH 2001. Atheris subocularis (Serpentes: Viperidae) revisited: molecular and morphological evidence for the resurrection of an enigmatic taxon. Copeia 2001 (3): 737-744 - get paper here
  • Lawson,D.P. & Ustach,P.C. 2000. A redescription of Atheris squamigera (Serpentes: Viperidae) with comments on the validity of Atheris anisolepis. Journal of Herpetology 34 (3): 386-389 - get paper here
  • Loveridge, A. 1936. African reptiles and amphibians in the Field Museum of Natural History. Zool. Ser. Field Mus. Nat. Hist., Chicago, 22 (1): 1-122 - get paper here
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  • Trape, J.-F. 2023. Guide des serpents d’Afrique occidentale, centrale et d’Afrique du Nord. IRD Éditions, Marseille, 896 pp.
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  • Zimin, A., Zimin, S. V., Shine, R., Avila, L., Bauer, A., Böhm, M., Brown, R., Barki, G., de Oliveira Caetano, G. H., Castro Herrera, F., Chapple, D. G., Chirio, L., Colli, G. R., Doan, T. M., Glaw, F., Grismer, L. L., Itescu, Y., Kraus, F., LeBreton 2022. A global analysis of viviparity in squamates highlights its prevalence in cold climates. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 00, 1–16 - get paper here
 
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