Short-tailed Mamushi

About the Short-tailed Mamushi

Gloydius blomhoffii, commonly known as the mamushi, Japanese moccasin, Japanese pit viper, Qichun snake, Salmusa or Japanese mamushi, is a pit viper species found in Japan. It was once considered to have 4 subspecies, but it is now considered monotypic.

This species, along with the yamakagashi (Rhabdophis tigrinus) and the Okinawan habu (Protobothrops flavoviridis), are the most venomous snakes in Japan. Every year, 2000–3000 people in Japan are bitten by a mamushi. Bitten victims typically require one week of treatment in a hospital. Severe bites require intensive care, and approximately 10 victims die annually.

This species is similar to the cottonmouths and copperheads (Agkistrodon sp.) of the Americas, and it was long considered part of the same group. The specific name, blomhoffii, is in honor of Jan Cock Blomhoff, who was director of the Dutch trading colony in Nagasaki, Japan from 1817 to 1824. The common name in English is mamushi, or Japanese mamushi.

The average length of mature individuals is 45–81 cm (17+3⁄4-31+7⁄8 inches); the longest specimen ever recorded had a length of 91 cm (36 in). The body pattern consists of a pale... Wikipedia →