The Ecogeography of the Bushmaster, Lachesis muta, in Central America.
American Midland Naturalist, 78: 182-187.
Abstract:
The ecological distribution of isthmian Lachesis is analyzed on the basis of its association with vegetation formations. The species is essentially restricted to tropical moist and wet forests in the coastal lowlands of Panama, Costa Rica and southeastern Nicaragua. Tropical dry forest areas have not significantly restricted populational interchange in the past, however, the cooler subtropics have been an effective limiting factor to latitudinal and altitudinal distribution. Present confinement of the bushmaster to the moist tropics is related to its historical origin in Central America, thermal requirements demanded by its large size and oviparous habit of reproduction.
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