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Echis carinatus (SCHNEIDER, 1801)

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Higher TaxaViperidae, Viperinae, Serpentes (snakes) 
SubspeciesEchis carinatus carinatus (SCHNEIDER 1801)
Echis carinatus sochureki STEMMLER, 1969 
Common NamesE: Saw-scaled Viper, Phoorsa
G: Sandrasselotter 
SynonymPseudoboa carinata SCHNEIDER 1801: 285
Echis carinata — DUMÉRIL & BIBRON 1854: 1448
Echis carinatus — SMITH 1943: 487
Echis carinatus sinhaleyus DERANIYAGALA 1951
Echis carinatus — HARDING & WELCH 1980
Echis multisquamatus CHERLIN 1981
Echis carinatus — MCDIARMID, CAMPBELL & TOURÉ 1999: 376

Echis carinatus sochureki STEMMLER 1969
Echis carinatus SINDERSON 1924
Echis carinatus sochureki STEMMLER 1969
Echis carinatus astolae MERTENS 1970
Echis multisquamatus CHERLIN 1981 (fide POOK et al. 2009)
Echis sochureki — CHERLIN 1984
Echis sochureki sochureki — CHERLIN & BORKIN 1990
Echis (Turanechis) sochureki — CHERLIN 1990
Echis carinatus sochureki — WELCH 1994: 57
Echis sochureki — HERRMANN et al. 1999
Echis sochureki — OKUDA et al. 2001
Echis carinatus sochureki — VAN DER KOOIJ 2001
Echis multisquamatus — ANANJEVA et al. 2004
Echis carinatus sochureki — DOBIEY & VOGEL 2007 
DistributionAfghanistan, Iran, India (Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Punjab, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra (Salher, Marunji, probably all over) [A. Captain, pers. Comm.]), Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan.

carinatus: peninsular India; no type locality available (fide LOVERIDGE 1936). Type locality (fide SCHMIDT 1939): “Arni” [= India].

astolae: Astola Island off the coast of Pakistan

multisquamatus: Uzbekistan, NW Baluchistan in Pakistan northwest into Turkmenistan, SW Tajikistan, Afghanistan, E Iran

sinhaleyus: Sri Lanka

sochureki: N India (incl. Punjab [Dino Aulakh, pers. comm.]), Bangladesh, S Afghanistan, Pakistan, C Iran, S Iraq, an isolated population in SE Arabian peninsula. Map legend:
TDWG region - Region according to the TDWG standard, not a precise distribution map.

NOTE: TDWG regions are generated automatically from the text in the distribution field and this does not always work properly. We are working on it.
 
TypesTYPE(S): Based on pI. 2 ("Horatta Pam") in Russell, 1796, Acct. Indian Serp. 1:90 pp.[2]. 
CommentVenomous! This is one of four common venomous snakes of medical importance in India. The others are Naja naja, Bungarus caeruleus, and Daboia russeli.

Synonymy: partly after MCDIARMID et al. 1999 and JOGER (pers. comm., 4 Dec 2012). Echis carinatus aliaborri DREWES & SACHERER 1974 has been referred to E. varia by CHERLIN & BORKIN 1990. CHERLIN 1984 and 1990 treats E. sochureki as valid species and erects the subgenus Turanechis for it. E. multisquamatus is considered as valid species by some authors (KHALIKOV, pers. comm.). Pauwels & Meirte (1996) cite Chabanaud (1917) who mentions Echis carinatus from Gambia. JOHANN (1981) reports C. carinatus from Algeria. Based on protein sequence data Okuda et al. (2001) suggest to elevate E. c. sochureki to species status.

Subspecies: E. c. multisquamatus is “separated from all other snakes of this genus by the large number of ventral (av. = 188.1), dorsal (av. = 37.1), and lateral scales (av. = 10.3). Moreover, it lacks enlarged scales over eyes. The light wavy stripes on the sides of the body are present and are not divided in separate arcs as in all other species of Echis. The white stripes on the back are transverse and narrow. There is a crosslike figure on the top of the head.” [from CHERLIN 1981].

STERNFELD (1910) reports mimicry of Echis carinatus by Dasypeltis scabra.

Holotype: CAS 130648 [aliaborri]

Size: up to 75 cm [Young 1905]

Reproduction: ovoviviparous (other species in the genus are oviparous, JOGER, pers. comm., 4 Dec 2012). 
References
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