Lenk et al. (2000) used mitochondrial DNA sequences to analyse the phylogeny of the pitless vipers (Viperinae). Their results have a number of implications on the taxonomy of viperine snakes, which will be discussed here.

Atheris/Adenorhinos - The study found Atheris ceratophorus to be more closely related to Adenorhinos barbouri than to other species of Atheris. The authors therefore suggest placing the species barbouri into the genus Atheris to avoid paraphyly of the latter.

Vipera/Macrovipera/Daboia - The large Eurasian vipers grouped into a number of clades which do not correspond to current generic classification. Unlike in previous studies (Herrmann et al., 1992), the present study places the species Macrovipera lebetina and M. schweizeri as sister group to the V. xanthina-raddei complex, whereas the North African Macrovipera mauritanica and M. deserti appear to be more closely related to Daboia russelii and Vipera palaestinae. This is all the more surprising as the North African species were long regarded as conspecific with M. lebetina. Lenk et al. suggest assigning the species mauritanica, deserti and palaestinae to Daboia, together with Russell's viper, so that Macrovipera would only comprise the lebetina-schweizeri group. The data presented by Lenk et al. also support the recognition of the subgenus Montivipera (described by Nilson et al. [1999] for the xanthina-raddei group) as a full genus (see previous comments).

• Herrmann, H.-W., U. Joger & G. Nilson (1992) Phylogeny and systematics of viperine snakes. III: resurrection of the genus Macrovipera (Reuss, 1927) as suggested by biochemical evidence. Amphibia-Reptilia, 13: 375-392
• Lenk, P., S. Kalayabina, M. Wink & U. Joger (2001) Evolutionary relationships among the true vipers (Reptilia: Viperidae) inferred from mitochondrial DNA sequences. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 19: 94-104.
• Nilson, G., B. Tuniyev, C. Andrén, N. Orlov, U. Joger & H.W. Herrmann (1999) Taxonomic position of the Vipera xanthina complex. Kaupia 8: 99-102.

Lawson et al. (2001) rediscovered and revalidated the bushviper Atheris subocularis. The species had been described by Fischer in 1888, based on a single specimen from Cameroon. Since then, it had been considered synonymous with A. squamigera. Lawson et al. (2001) found 4 new specimens in southwetsern Cameroon, and noted a number of morphological differences between A. subocularis and A. squamigera, including a contact between the 4th or 5th supralabial and the eye, and differences in several other scale counts. They therefore consider A. subocularis to be a valid species.

• Lawson, D.P., B.P. Noonan & P.C. Ustach (2001) Atheris subocularis (Serpentes: Viperidae) revisited: moleuclar and morphological evidence for the resurrection of an enigmatic taxon. Copeia 2001: 737-744.

Baran et al. (2001) discuss variation in some new specimens of the poorly known viper Vipera barani, from northeastern Asiatic Turkey. The specimens blur the distinction between V. barani and V. pontica, and the authors conclude that the two forms are conspecific, and represent a single species of small viper occurring along the northern coastal moutains of Anatolia.

• Baran, I., U. Joger, B. Kutrup & O. Turkozan (2001) On new specimens of Vipera barani Bohme & Joger, 1983, from northeastern Anatolia, and implications for the validity of Vipera pontica Billing, Nilson & Sattler, 1990 (Reptilia, Viperidae). Zoology in the Middle East 23: 47-53.

Nilson and Andrén (2001) revise the systematics of the meadow and steppe viper (Vipera ursinii) complex. Until the 1980s, all populations of this complex were assigned to the species Vipera ursinii, with hefty disputes among various authors on the delimitation of subspecies boundaries. Based on the analysis of morphological variation as well as protein electrophoretic and immunological distance data,  Nilson &  Andrén (2001) recognise the following taxa:

• Vipera ursinii ursinii: Italian Appennines and Alps of southeastern France.
• Vipera ursinii macrops: mountains of southeastern Europe (Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, Montenegro, northern Albania), and also reported from the Adiatic island of Krk
• Vipera ursinii graeca: Pindos mountains of central Greece
• Vipera ursinii rakosiensis: relict teppes in Hungary, extinct in Romania and Austria.
• Vipera ursinii moldavica: Romania (Moldavia and Danube Delta), possibly some localities in Bulgaria.
• Vipera renardi renardi: steppe regions of Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan. There are differences between western and eastern populations of this taxon, which may require further splitting. Furthermore, populations from the Altai mountains of Kazakhstan and China represent a further, undescribed taxon.
• Vipera renardi parursinii: mountain steppes of northern Xinjiang, NW China. Taxon described in this paper.
• Vipera renardi tienshanica: Tien Shan mountains of Kazakhstan, Kirgizia and NW China. Taxon described in this paper.
• Vipera anatolica: Kohu Dag Moutains, Antalya Province, southern Turkey.
• Vipera eriwanensis: Armenian Plateau: Armenia, NW Turkey, western Azerbaijan.
• Vipera ebneri: northern and northwestern Iran.
• Vipera lotievi: northern slopes of the Caucasus (Russia, Georgia, Azerbaijan).

• Nilson, G. & C. Andrén (2001) The meadow and steppe vipers of Europe and Asia - the Vipera (Acridophaga) ursinii complex. Acta Zoologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 47(2-3): 87-267.

Tuniyev and Ostrovskikh (2001) describe two new species of small viper from the Caucasus, Vipera orlovi and V. magnifica. Both were formerly included in V. kaznakovi, and originate from the Krasnodarskii Region of Russia, no the northeastern shore of the Black Sea. They differ from V. kaznakovi in a number of scalation and head pigmentation characters.

• Tuniyev, B.S. & S.V. Ostrovskikh (2001) Two new species of vipers of "kaznakovi" complex (Ophidia, Viperinae) from the Western Caucasus. Russian Journal of Herpetology 8: 117-126.

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