Metapil

Description

Agkistrodon taylori is species of venomous snake, a pitviper (Crotalinae) found only in northeastern Mexico. The standardized names are Taylor's cantil (English) and Metapil (Spanish), although it is sometimes called the ornate cantil as well as several other colloquial names. It was named in honor of American herpetologist Edward Harrison Taylor. It is a stout, medium sized snake, averaging 64-90 cm. in length. Taylor's cantils have prominent light and dark stripes on the head, with a pattern of black and gray-brown bands on the body, accented with white, yellow, and orange. They are sexually dimorphic, with males being significantly darker than females. Some older individuals, particularly males, may grow darker, nearly black with age. It is a viviparous species, with typical litters of 3 to 10 live young. Taylor's cantils are uncommon to rare snakes in the wild and listed as a threatened species in Mexico. It occurs in a variety of habitats on the Gulf Coastal Plain and lower foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental, including thorn scrub, tropical deciduous forest, and grasslands, sometimes said to prefer ecotones between scrubland and forest in the vicinity of rocky limestone outcroppings. Although not overtly aggressive, it is known to be very defensive with a volatile temper and may be quick to strike when approached, threatened, or restrained. No case reports of human envenomations have been published. Its venom is believed to be similar to its close relative, the cantil Agkistrodon bilineatus, and potentially fatal. The original description states that the specific, or trivial name, was "Named for Dr. Edward H. Taylor in recognition of his many contributions to our knowledge of the Mexican herpetofauna."  Indeed, Taylor's extensive publications on Mexico's amphibians and reptiles, culminating with the "Herpetology of Mexico", published in collaboration with his student Hobart M. Smith, is the foundation of modern Mexican herpetology. Taylor's work on Mexico alone would have secured him a prominent reputation in the field of herpetology. However, Taylor made equally important contribution to Philippine land mammals, the herpetofauna of the Philippines, herpetofauna of the south-central United States, Eumeces (skinks of the world at that time), the herpetofauna of Costa Rica, the herpetofauna of Thailand, and caecilians of the world