Cerastes gasperettii

Taxonomy

Assessment Information

Geographic Range

Population

Habitat and Ecology

Threats

Conservation Actions

View Printer Friendly

Taxonomy [top]

Kingdom	Phylum	Class	Order	Family
ANIMALIA	CHORDATA	REPTILIA	SQUAMATA	VIPERIDAE

Scientific Name:

Cerastes gasperettii

Species Authority:

Leviton & Anderson, 1967

Common Name/s:

English

–

Arabian Horned Viper

Assessment Information [top]

Red List Category & Criteria:	Least Concern ver 3.1
Year Published:	2012
Assessor/s:	Egan, D.M., Amr, Z.S.S., Al Johany, A.M.H., Els, J., Papenfuss, T., Nilson, G., Sadek, R., Disi, A.M., Hraoui-Bloquet, S., Werner, Y.L. & Anderson, S.
Reviewer/s:	Cox, N.A. & Bowles, P.
Contributor/s:
Justification: Listed as Least Concern in view of its wide global distribution, presumed large population, and because it is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a more threatened category.

Geographic Range [top]

Range Description:	This species is present in southeastern Israel and western and southern Jordan from where it ranges eastwards into Iraq and Iran (Kuzestan) (Steven Anderson pers. comm., September 2008), and the Arabian Peninsula where it has been recorded in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman and Yemen. It ranges as high as 1,500m asl.
Countries:	Native: Iran, Islamic Republic of; Iraq; Israel; Jordan; Kuwait; Oman; Qatar; Saudi Arabia; United Arab Emirates; Yemen
Range Map:	Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.

Population [top]

Population:	It is fairly abundant within suitable habitat.
Population Trend:	Stable

Habitat and Ecology [top]

Habitat and Ecology:	This species is found in loose sand dunes and gravel wadis close to the sand. It has also been recorded from dry salt marshes. In Arabia, it is found on a sand substrate over rock, or hard earth. This is an egg laying, not a viviparous species.
Systems:	Terrestrial

Threats [top]

Major Threat(s):	There are no major threats to this species in the Arabian Peninsula (T. Papenfuss pers. comm. 2008). It is threatened by overcollection for venom extraction in Saudi Arabia.

Major Threat(s):

There are no major threats to this species in the Arabian Peninsula (T. Papenfuss pers. comm. 2008). It is threatened by overcollection for venom extraction in Saudi Arabia.

Conservation Actions [top]

Conservation Actions:	It has been recorded from the Wadi Rum Reserve in Jordan. It is protected by national legislation in Israel. There are protected areas within the range of the species in Iran, but it is not known if the species is present in these (S. Anderson pers. comm. 2008). It is within protected areas in Saudi Arabia.

Conservation Actions:

It has been recorded from the Wadi Rum Reserve in Jordan. It is protected by national legislation in Israel. There are protected areas within the range of the species in Iran, but it is not known if the species is present in these (S. Anderson pers. comm. 2008). It is within protected areas in Saudi Arabia.

Citation:	Egan, D.M., Amr, Z.S.S., Al Johany, A.M.H., Els, J., Papenfuss, T., Nilson, G., Sadek, R., Disi, A.M., Hraoui-Bloquet, S., Werner, Y.L. & Anderson, S. 2012. Cerastes gasperettii. In: IUCN 2012. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2012.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 26 May 2013.
Disclaimer:	To make use of this information, please check the <Terms of Use>.
Feedback:	If you see any errors or have any questions or suggestions on what is shown on this page, please fill in the feedback form so that we can correct or extend the information provided