Also known as yarará de la cruz, for the cross-shaped or telephone-shaped design it bears on its head. A thick, stout body of brown or grayish color, adorned on the sides with dark inverted "C"-shaped blotches edged with white. The triangular head is well differentiated from the neck, with vertical pupils and a loreal pit between the eye and the nostril that works as an ultra-sensitive thermal sensor to detect the heat of its prey in the dark. It has mobile, hollow fangs (solenoglyphous dentition) with which it injects a potent hemotoxic venom. Length: 80 to 120 cm. Weight: 1 to 2.5 kg.
Behaviour
Principalmente nocturna y crepuscular. Pasa el día oculta bajo troncos caídos, matorrales o cuevas de roedores. Animal que no persigue al humano, pero de reacción defensiva rápida: puede morder si se la pisa, se la molesta o se siente acorralada sin vía de escape. Dieta basada casi exclusivamente en pequeños mamíferos como ratones de campo y cuises.
How and when to see it
Year-round, with reduced activity in the colder months. Tourists usually come across it at dusk or at night while walking the pedestrian trails on firm ground or along the edges of the vehicle roads.
Where to see it in the Iberá
The gateways of the Great Iberá Park where urutu lancehead has confirmed presence:
Tours to see it
Verified providers operating at the gateways where urutu lancehead lives. You contact them directly on WhatsApp from the app.
- Esteros Ñe’é
Experiencias con relato local y mirada cultural sobre los esteros.★ 5 - Salvaje Iberá
Senderismo, cicloturismo, safari fotográfico, avistaje de fauna, paseos largos en el día…★ 5 - Gaucho Argentino
Travesías a caballo por una red de refugios en el Iberá. Cabalgatas de varios días con…★ 5 - Reserva Natural Don Luis
Reserva natural privada en Portal Cambyretá, gestionada por la Fundación Cambyretá…★ 5
Species profile
- Common nameUrutu Lancehead
- Scientific nameBothrops alternatus
- GroupReptile
- StatusNative
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