(Source: Yangmingshan National Park Headquarters)

Cattle horn snake

Academic name:
English name: Pointed-scaled pit viper

The pointed-scaled pit viper is a medium-sized snake that grows to about 100cm length on average and about 150 cm maximum . There is a row of big turtle-shaped dim-tea-color marks running across its back and smaller ones on each side. These turtle-shaped marks link together and twist in a wave-like pattern, giving the snake perfect camouflage. It has a big triangular head and is also known as the cattle horn snake in Chinese. It is the most aggressive amid the common venomous snakes in Taiwan. It has pits on its face, allowing it to detect the body temperature of mammals at night.

The species is often found in west and mid-southern China, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar, India, and mid- and low-elevation areas on Taiwan Island. They live in the mountainside or near cultivated lands and are active in abandoned dwellings or farms. Therefore, most victims are bitten near their homes. They are rather active at night and very aggressive. Frogs, lizards, birds and rats are their staple foods. They lay about 3-15 eggs each breeding cycle in summer, and it takes about 1-1.5 month to hatch these eggs. The baby snakes are about 22cm long, and a mother pointed-scaled pit viper habitually protects her eggs.

The pointed-scaled pit viper is occasionally seen on Yangmingshan. It has a pair of big solenoglyphic teeth known as the biggest amidst all venomous snakes in Taiwan leaving obvious marks on the victims. It is also the most aggressive of the common venomous snakes in Taiwan. It is the number two attacker and number four killer of humans in Taiwan. The mortality rate of victims is around 7%. Its venom contains hemorrhagic toxins, and the wound often swells with bruises and bloody blisters.