Atractaspis scorteccii
Encyclopedia
Atractaspis scorteccii, or the Somali burrowing asp, is a species of snake
in the Atractaspididae
family. The specific epithet, scorteccii, is in honor of Italian
herpetologist Giuseppe Scortecci (1898 - 1973). It is endemic to Africa
.
Snake
Snakes are elongate, legless, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes that can be distinguished from legless lizards by their lack of eyelids and external ears. Like all squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping scales...
in the Atractaspididae
Atractaspididae
The Atractaspididae are a family of snakes found in Africa and the Middle East. Currently, 12 genera are recognized.-Description:This family includes many genera formerly classed in other families, on the basis of fang type. It includes fangless , rear-fanged , fixed-fanged , and viper-like species...
family. The specific epithet, scorteccii, is in honor of Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
herpetologist Giuseppe Scortecci (1898 - 1973). It is endemic to Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
.