Atheris mabuensis, the Mount Mabu forest viper,[2] is a species of venomous snake in the family Viperidae. The species is endemic to Mozambique.[1][3]
| Atheris mabuensis | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Serpentes |
| Family: | Viperidae |
| Genus: | Atheris |
| Species: | A. mabuensis |
| Binomial name | |
| Atheris mabuensis | |
Discovery
During his second reconnaissance visit to Mount Mabu (23–26 January 2006) Dr. Julian Bayliss found a very young forest viper in leaf litter on the floor of closed-canopy wet forest on Mount Mabu at approximately 1,000 m (3,300 ft). On examination in the Port Elizabeth Museum (BayWorld, acronym PEM) herpetological collection by Prof. Bill Branch, the specimen was identified as a member of the genus Atheris, which had never previously been recorded from Mozambique and which, moreover, represented a substantial southern range extension for the genus.