Serpente cresta di gallo
Langaha nasuta - Colubridae

una femmina

Il serpente cresta di gallo, Langaha nasuta, della famiglia Colubridi, č lungo circa 1 m, con un corpo molto slanciato, vive nel Madagascar e si distingue per la bizzarra e vistosa appendice, di forma diversa nei due sessi, che reca sul capo. Nei maschi l'appendice del muso č semplicemente foggiata a punta, mentre nelle femmine ha la forma di una foglia carnosa e dentellata che ricorda la cresta semplice del gallo, nel quale č determinata dal gene Bd+. Langaha č parola straniera, verosimilmente non europea, la cui etimologia č sconosciuta.

in alto la femmina e in basso il maschio

Langaha nasuta - This is easily one of the weirdest reptiles in the world. Just like the Asian vine snake, the Langaha snake (also known as the leaf-nosed snake) is adapted to an arboreal lifestyle and feeds mostly on lizards. Its most interesting trait is, of course, the weird ”horn” or projection on its snout. Both genders have this weird ornament, but males and females look very different from each other; males are yellowish and have smooth skin and a sharp, pointed ”horn”, while females have rough-looking brown scales and a flat, leaf-shaped and serrated horn. This is one of the few cases in which a snake’s gender can be determined easily at first sight. Langaha nasuta snakes are found only in Madagascar’s endangered rain forests. It is venomous and its bite can be extremely painful to humans but not life-threatening.