The Moorish viper (Daboia mauritanica or Macrovipera mauritanica; common names: Moorish viper,Mallow D, Ludwig D, Nilson G (2003). True Vipers: Natural History and Toxinology of Old World Vipers. Malabar, Florida: Krieger Publishing Company. 359 pp. . Sahara rock viper,U.S. Navy (1991). Poisonous Snakes of the World. New York: U.S. Government / Dover Publications Inc. 203 pp. . Atlas blunt-nosed viper,Mehrtens JM (1987). Living Snakes of the World in Color. New York: Sterling Publishers. 480 pp. . more) is a species of venomous snake in the subfamily Viperinae of the family Viperidae. The species is native to northwestern Africa. No subspecies are recognized as being valid.
Description Daboia mauritanica reaches a maximum total length (tail included) of .Spawls S, Branch B (1995). The Dangerous Snakes of Africa. Sanibel Island, Florida: Ralph Curtis Books. 192 pp. .
Common names Common names for Daboia mauritanica include Moorish viper, Sahara rock viper, Atlas blunt-nosed viper, Atlas adder,Brown JH (1973). Toxicology and Pharmacology of Venoms from Poisonous Snakes. Springfield, Illinois: Charles C. Thomas. 184 pp. LCCCN 73-229. . and mountain adder.
Geographic distribution Daboia mauritanica is found in northwestern Africa: Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia. The type locality is "Algiers", according to Gray (1842), "Algeria" according to Schwarz (1936). It is limited to the coastal regions of Algeria. Coastal records from Tunisia may refer to Macrovipera deserti.
Conservation status
Daboia mauritanica is classified as Near Threatened (NT) according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (v3.1, 2001). Classified as such because this species is likely in significant decline (but at a rate of less than 30% over ten years) due to persecution, accidental mortality and over-harvesting, therefore making it close to qualifying for Vulnerable. The population trend is down. Year assessed: 2005.
Taxonomy Based on molecular evidence, Lenk et al. (2001) suggested that this species, along with Macrovipera deserti, should rather be included in the genus Daboia.
References
External links
. Accessed 9 September 2007.