Cauliflower protosthesis vipers belong to the snake genus Protosthecus of the viper subfamily Of the viper family. It is one of the pit vipers with a wide range and a large number of distribution in Asia, which is mainly distributed in the provinces and regions around the Yangtze River Basin and the Qinling Mountains, including Shanxi, Hubei, Guizhou, Henan, Guangxi and Sichuan, and distributed in Vietnam, India, Myanmar and Nepal. This snake has a bright and beautiful body color, hence the name. Common names are also called cauliflower soldering iron head, rhombus bamboo leaf green and so on.
The original spearhead pit viper was first named in 1875, the pattern originated in the Indian state of Assam, and when the original spearhead viper genus was not yet established, it was classified under the genus Soldering Iron Head, and the original name was cauliflower soldering iron head. In 1983, after the establishment of the original spearhead viper genus, it was re-attributed to the original spearhead viper genus and renamed cauliflower original spearhead viper.
With the deepening of research, zoologists have successively issued some of its subspecies in different places, and there are 3 subspecies that have been confirmed so far, namely the designated subspecies, which are mainly distributed in india, the northeast of Nepal, Myanmar, Yunnan of China and Tibet; the subspecies of North Vietnam, distributed in northwest vietnam; and the subspecies of Sichuan and Hubei, mainly distributed in many regions of southern China. There are significant differences in body color and scale count between the three subspecies. There is actually another subspecies that is the southern subspecies, but this subspecies is not widely recognized.
According to the distribution records of the cauliflower original spearhead pit viper, it is a high-altitude highland mountain snake. The distribution pattern in China belongs to the Eastern Himalayas- Hengduan Mountain System, and the vertical distribution is at least above 1500 meters, but some areas in the north of China are also distributed in areas below 1000 meters.
Due to the obvious differences in the species and morphology of the different geographical distribution of the cauliflower proto-spearhead viper, it has always been the focus of attention of zoologists. The western part of China has many high-altitude mountains and plateaus (such as hengduan mountains, western Sichuan plateau, Yunnan-Guizhou plateau), with unique natural conditions and rich biodiversity. Many studies have shown that. The uplift of the Tibetan Plateau has resulted in a unique topographic history, unique geomorphological morphology and diverse climate, factors that have played a crucial role in shaping the modern distribution, evolutionary history, population structure and diversity of native plants and animals.
According to the different distribution areas of the cauliflower original spearhead pit viper, in order to clarify the interrelationship and classification of these different geographically distributed snakes. A paper published by domestic scholars in 2011 analyzed the kinship of cauliflower original spearhead pit viper in different regions of China, as well as in Vietnam and other places, using molecular genetics research, showing that cauliflower original spearhead pit vipers in all these regions are divided into pit vipers
There are 5 different lineages, the first is from southwestern Sichuan, as well as from Guangxi and Chongqing regions, the second is from populations from northern Sichuan, the third is from Hunan and Hubei, the fourth is from Yunnan and Vietnam, and this branch is the sister group of Xiangchengyuan spearhead viper, and the fifth is from southeastern Tibet.
Study sample distribution map from cauliflower pit viper in the literature
According to scholars' analysis, the population from Tibet may be the most ancient, and the western side of the Hengduan Mountains is most likely the center of origin of the cauliflower viper. Before the large-scale uplift of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau 6 million years ago, the cauliflower viper began to spread from west to east, and after the uplift of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, a highly heterogeneous habitat was formed, forming a blocking distribution situation between different regions. With the continuous rise of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the populations in different mountain ranges have been separated by low-altitude areas, hindering the flow of genes between each other, and the isolation of the regions has gradually formed the current individual distribution pattern of different morphological differences. Although there is a certain genetic distance between these lineages, it is not considered to be the basis for their formation of independent species.
Although the cauliflower original spearhead pit viper is a poisonous snake, its distribution dimension is high, the population density is also low, and they are generally not commonly seen, so there are not many cases of injury, and the study of it is also limited. It is worth mentioning that the cauliflower original spearhead pit viper is the only oviparous snake in the genus of proto-spearhead pit vipers.
Protobothrops jerdonii jerdonii )
North Vietnamese subspecies (protobothrops jerdonii bourreti)
Subspecies of Protobothrops jerdonii xanthomelas