Reptiles · Squamata · Viperidae

Desert Horned Viper

Cerastes cerastes

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

The Saharan horned viper is a horned viper native to the desert regions of North Africa and the Middle East. It is easily recognised by a pair of 'horns' above the eyes, though some specimens lack them. No subspecies are known.

Size

30 cm – 85 cm

Lifespan

15 years

Diet

Carnivore

Feeds mainly on other animals.

Activity

Nocturnal

Active mainly at night.

Social structure

Solitary

Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

DesertCarnivore Nocturnal Solitary Reptile Desert

32countries 4parks22same family

Fun facts

It buries itself in the sand within seconds by vibrating its whole body, until only its eyes and horns show: it can spend days like that, invisible, waiting for prey to pass overhead.
It appears in Egyptian hieroglyphs as the consonantal sign for the letter F, one of the few animals of Ancient Egypt with a hieroglyph of its own in phonetic use.
The horns, each formed by a modified scale above the eye, appear to shield the eyes from sand, though there are hornless populations living in exactly the same environment.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (reptile)
Habitat & environment: Dunes, sandy plains and wadis of the Sahara, the Sahel and the Arabian Peninsula
Sexual maturity: 2 years
Gestation / incubation: 60 days of incubation
Litter / clutch size: 15 eggs

Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerastes_cerastes