Common names: Joger's carpet viper, Mali carpet viper, Joger's saw-scaled viper.

Echis jogeri is a venomous

Venomous snake

"Poisonous snake" redirects here. For true poisonous snakes, see Rhabdophis.Venomous snakes are snakes which have venom glands and specialized teeth for the injection of venom...

 viper

Viperinae

The Viperinae, or viperines, are a subfamily of venomous vipers found in Europe, Asia and Africa. They are distinguished by their lack of the heat-sensing pit organs that characterize their sister group, the Crotalinae. Currently, 12 genera and 66 species are recognized...

 species

Species

In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...

 found only in Mali

Mali

Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...

. No subspecies are currently recognized.

Description

This species is relatively small, averaging only about 30 cm in length. Its build, however, is relatively stout, the cross-section of which is cylindrical or subtriangular. The scalation of the head is similar to that of E. leucogaster

Echis leucogaster

Echis leucogaster is a venomous viper species found in West and Northwest Africa. It is named after its white, unmarked belly. No subspecies are currently recognized.-Description:...

. Midbody, the dorsal scale rows number 27. The ventral scales

Ventral scales

In snakes, the ventral scales are the enlarged and transversely elongated scales that extend down the underside of the body from the neck to the anal scale. When counting them, the first is the anteriormost ventral scale that contacts the paraventral row of dorsal scales on either side...

 number 123-136. Coloration and pattern are both variable, ranging from brown to gray to reddish and everything in between. It generally consists of a series of light, oblique, dorsal crossbars or saddles set against a darker ground color. The flanks are lighter in color, normally with a series of triangular, subtriangular or circular, dark markings with light or white edges. The belly is an unbroken pale cream, white or ivory.

Geographic range

Western and central Mali

Mali

Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...

. The type locality is listed as "Mali, 3 km ot Tombuktu" (Mali, 3 km from Timbuktu

Timbuktu

Timbuktu , formerly also spelled Timbuctoo, is a town in the West African nation of Mali situated north of the River Niger on the southern edge of the Sahara Desert. The town is the capital of the Timbuktu Region, one of the eight administrative regions of Mali...

).