-*-Eyelash Pit Viper-*-
Eyelash Pit vipers range from southern Mexico through Central America to Columbia, Ecuador, and western Venezuela.
These vipers are one of the smallest poisonous snakes in Central America. They grow to be about 2 1/2 feet long.
The animals that they eat are: small mammals, birds, nestlings, lizards, and frogs. Juveniles eat small frogs.
When they do find a prey they will strike and wait for the prey to die until finally swallowing it whole.
They fold back when they are not in use.
Eyelash vipers have slitted pupils, very long fangs, and painful bites. They don't generally bite humans unless they are taunted or trampled upon.
They are called "Pit" Vipers because of the heat sensing pits between the eyes and nostrils. These pits make it simple for the eyelash pit viper to locate prey or predators in the dark.
Eyelash pit vipers come in yellow, green, and a pinkish hue.
Females are ovoviviparous: is a mode of reproduction in animals in which embryos develop inside eggs that are retained within the mother's body until they are ready to hatch.
Oviparous animals are similar to viviparous species in that there is internal fertilization and the young are born live, but differ in that there is no placental connection and the unborn young are nourished by egg yolk; the mother's body does provide gas exchange(respiration), but that is largely necessary for oviparous animals as well.
They can give birth to 6-12 live young.
Fact Courtesy of: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ovoviviparity*Tidbits* Vipers use their sense of smell to find mates. The males go through a ritual called "the dance of the adders" when two vipers are competing for the same female.
They face each other with the head and the forepart of the body held straight up, while trying to push the other to the ground. This can go on for hours. Neither of the snakes bite while doing this.
The Eyelash pit viper gets it's name from scales that form above their eyes.
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