NOSE-HORNED VIPER
This beautiful snake is reputed to be the most dangerous snake in Europe, due to its large size, long fangs (up to 13mm) and high venom toxicity. It is actually a very placid snake, and when disturbed will produce a hissing sound, biting only when teased, handled or stepped on. This snake can attain a total length of 850mm, but here on Kefalonia, 650mm is more common. Males are a whitish, silver grey, and the females are more reddish brown. Both have a dark zigzag on their backs and occasionally dark spots on their flanks. This snake's unmistakable feature is the horn on its snout, which is soft and the same colour as the body.
The nose-horned viper is also known as the sand viper, but you are more likely to spot them amongst rocks and stones with vegetation cover. They are happy to use man-made stonewalls, and my strawberry trug, which meant collecting strawberries for Simones's breakfast, more interesting. The adults feed on small mammals and lizards, while the juveniles eat arthropods, such as centipedes and young lizards. They are active during the day and hibernate during the Winter. The female will give birth to up to 20 live young in the Summer. If you are unlucky enough to be bitten, then medical aid should be sought.
