| 1 | Dinnik’s viper |
Vipera is a genus of true vipers found in Eurasia, which numbers 21 as of 2025. The genus includes the famous adder of the UK, and the lethal asp viper of France, but there’s also several much more obscure members. The first of our list is Dinnik’s viper, AKA Vipera dinniki. This species lives solely in the Caucasus mountains of extreme southern Russia, which straddle the borders of Azerbaijan and Georgia.
Dinnik’s viper lives at high altitudes of at least 1000 metres, occasionally climbing to 3000 metres. Its favourite habitats are sub-alpine, with open meadows strewn with boulders and thorny juniper bushes. Dinnik’s viper doesn’t encounter human beings often, and little is known about its venom. Males are slightly shorter than females, reaching a maximum of 41.2cm versus 48.6cm.
Dinnik’s vipers lay live young, usually 3-7 per litter, which are born in August to September. They have a wide variety of colours, with sleek gold and black being standard, like this is an elite viper with its own personal mountain kingdom. But there’s also grey and black morphs, and in 2021, researchers stumbled across 3 fully black (melanistic) Dinnik’s vipers. These were found at above 2000 metres in Georgia, and it’s assumed that the blackness was to allow higher sunlight absorption. Dinnik’s viper is now endangered, as its pristine mountain territory grows ever more fragmented.
| 2 | Forest steppe adder |
The resident viper of eastern Ukraine, and Russian areas over the border. Instead of being a melanistic fluke, this version is dense black by default. One of its main hotspots is the Kharkiv region of northern Ukraine. To the west, they reach Moldova and just edge into northeastern Romania. This is a medium-sized species, with a maximum length of 68cm.
Forest steppe adders (Vipera nikolskii) share Ukraine with the main adder (Vipera berus), but the two live in separate habitats. Forest steppe adders particularly love broad-leafed forests adjacent to river banks. They’re commonly found in humid bogs within pine forests, and they generally prefer more cluttered areas. A 2006 study found that they like spots with rotting logs, heavy bush cover, and an abundance of rodent holes to hide in. Their favourite hibernation spots are eroded forest slopes with fallen trees.
A bite from the forest steppe adder is no joke, unleashing swelling, pain and hypotension. They also have moderate neurotoxic qualities, causing progressive limb paralysis. Autopsies of bitten mice revealed that heart failure was the main cause of death, but the kidneys also showed haemorrhaging. 65% of the toxin soup consists of PLA2s, while 19% is serine proteases. The study above also found that forest steppe adders have a regular neighbor; they lived alongside grass snakes in 60% of their habitats tested.
| 3 | Orlov’s viper |
A rare viper which is sliding steadily towards extinction. Vipera orlovi inhabits the Caucasus mountains, but only small pockets within Russia. They lie roughly to the northwest of Dinnik’s viper, and don’t stray into Azerbaijan or Armenia at all.
Orlov’s viper is another small species, measuring 50-60cm. The species was only discovered in 2001, and the first individual ever described measured 51.4cm. Orlov’s viper specialises in being muddy brown, contrasting against a dense black zigzag running down their spine. Its venom contains at least 135 proteins, and consists of 22% PLA2s and 24% serine proteases. No actual human bites are on record, but these toxins are known to shred human skin tissue.
Orlov’s viper is already endangered and declining rapidly. They live in one region on the northeast coast of the Black Sea – Krasnodar Krai, a popular tourist hub with many sprawling villas. They stick to altitudes of 400-950 metres, and areas with a Mediterranean climate, such as warm riparian glades and juniper forests.
A survey from 2014-2016 found that Orlov’s viper had disappeared from some former locations, including popular tourist hotspot Gelendzhik. As well as the usual mammals, Orlov’s viper eats insects, frogs and reptiles. They’re one of the least selective vipers in their diet, and this might be the only thing keeping them from extinction.
| 4 | Renard’s viper |
A viper of more open areas, such as hillsides, forest edges and shrublands. Renard’s viper is also declining in its local enclaves, but unlike Orlov’s viper, they had such a large range originally that they won’t be going extinct any time soon. You can find Renard’s viper (Vipera renardi) from Ukraine to China, to the barren wastelands of Mongolia. They inhabit a range of altitudes, from sea level to a maximum of 2500 metres.
Vipera renardi has a calmer temperament than the nearby adder. They’re timid, reluctant to bite, and usually seek to escape if possible. If they do bite, their venom is rarely fatal, but far from a fun time. Instead, they cause agonising local symptoms such as extreme pain, redness and swelling that spreads far beyond the bite site. There’s also mild neurotoxic symptoms such as dizziness and drowsiness.
As they live closer to normal Ukrainians rather than hiding in rugged mountains, Renard’s viper has more bite data than some Vipera species. No human deaths have been recorded, but there’s been a few recorded horse deaths.
This is another insect-loving viper, with a specially targeted venom towards them. As adults, Renard’s vipers move onto mammals, but keep insects as a handy backup. Renard’s vipers don’t get on with each other; placing males together in captivity usually results in them wrestling for dominance. This species averages at around 35-45cm, but the largest can reach 70cm.
| 5 | Caucasus viper |
A Russian and Georgian viper, this species hugs the east coast of the Black Sea. The Caucasus viper (Vipera kaznakovi) is found at lower altitudes in moist forests, with one of their hotspots being the Georgian city of Balumi. Moistness is a requirement for this snake; a forested hillside or bottom of a wet ravine is perfect. Vipera kaznakovi has been found in azalea and cherry groves, and multiple forest types ranging from willow to beech to chestnut.
The Caucasus viper has a non-fussy diet, including mice, lizards and frogs alike. According to a 2016 study, its venom contains 116 proteins. 3 other viper species were tested, and Vipera kaznakovi contained 6 unique toxins. Its main toxins are PLA2s (41% of the total), which attack internal organs, and snake venom metalloproteinases (14%), which cause necrosis and tissue damage.
Another ingredient is hyaluronidase, a tactical ingredient, which dissolves skin cells to allow venom to diffuse faster. All this is just theoretical though – there are no detailed bite reports in humans, except vague mentions of occasional deaths in old Russian journals.
This species has an IUCN tag of “endangered” – they’re not in mortal peril, yet the expansion of agriculture and tourism along the Black Sea coast is causing some local populations to vanish. This species peaks at 60cm, with females exceeding males (max 47.5cm).
| 6 | Darevskii’s viper |
One of the smallest true viper species, with a record length of just 42.1cm in females. Consequently, its bite doesn’t pack much punch, and is rarely fatal. Darevskii’s vipers (Vipera darevskii) live in an extremely narrow pocket of land, straddling the border regions of Armenia, northeast Turkey and southern Georgia. They’re typically found on sweeping hillsides with a piercing wind blowing, and it’s rare for them to appear at below 2000 metres. Scree slopes on hillsides are a particular favourite for this viper.
This viper has rough scales to touch (although touching isn’t advised). They also have a strong gender disparity, AKA sexual dimorphism. Males are bright black and yellow with a sharp contrast, while female colours are significantly duller. This species is classed as “endangered” by IUCN, but is now protected in one zone – Arpilich National Park in Armenia. Overgrazing by livestock animals is one of their greatest threats.
In the wild, Darevskii’s vipers split their diet between mammals and reptiles. Armenian lizards, common voles and European snow voles are all confirmed species. In captivity, they happily gobble up rats, and they digest food particularly rapidly – one rat was gone within 3 days. This led to a theory that they need especially high amounts of food, explaining why they can’t spread far.
| 7 | Alburzi viper |
This species reaches a maximum of 50cm, and inhabits Armenia, Georgia, and northwest Iran. It’s especially common in mountainous areas of Azerbaijan, and was first discovered in 1933.
The Alburzi viper (Vipera eriwanensis) has 54-78 zigzags down its spine, and reaches altitudes of 3000 metres. This is a species of rocky mountain steppe and high altitude meadows. They also appear under juniper bushes on the edges of dormant volcanoes. This species is never common, even in areas where it thrives. It’s always found in low densities, as it’s rare for scientists to find more than 5 individuals per 1km of route explored. Alburzi vipers can also appear in pasture land near villages, at lower altitudes.
The Alburzi viper has never been found in Russia, but new locations are constantly being discovered. It was originally thought to only live as far north as Turkey’s Aras river, but in 2005, it was found beyond the river, 210 miles further west of its previous known limit. It’s believed that the Alburzi viper is most closely related to Darevskii’s viper.
Some of these vipers can be difficult to distinguish at first glance. However, Alburzi vipers have thinner zigzags generally, with beige (or grey) covering a larger area on their flanks. With Dinnik’s viper, the zigzag is far huger, even so wide that it smooths off the edges and just becomes a thick stripe. Then there’s Orlov’s viper, which has a sloppier, less sharply defined zigzag.
| 8 | Atlas mountain viper |
The only African member of the true viper genus. Africa is home to such lethal creatures as bush vipers (Atheris) and mole vipers (Atractaspis), but only the Atlas dwarf adder belongs to the official Vipera clan.
This species has a maximum length of just 40cm, and inhabits the high Atlas mountain range of Morocco, resting on rocky slopes near crumbling ridges. They inhabit bushy gullies and mountain passes where humans rarely tread, as well as farming villages lower down. Vipera monticola was originally thought to be a subspecies of the Spanish Lataste’s viper, as the two share the same protruding nose horn. However, DNA analysis revealed a genetic gulf of 6% between them.
Vipera monticola is a mixture of grey and brown with no clear patterns, no striking zigzags like its Russian relatives. This is one of the highest-climbing Vipera members, with confirmed sightings at 3900 metres above sea level in the Atlas mountains.
Vipera monticola is a naturally rare species, which has low population densities even in areas where mankind has no presence. They move by day, and love to bask in the sun on rocky slopes. Atlas dwarf adders are such experts at sucking up warmth that they can leave their hibernation dens while there’s still melting snow patches around.
| 9 | Altai viper |
This small viper was only discovered in 2010. While surveying the rocky plains of eastern Kazakhstan, scientists stumbled across several colonies of a completely unknown viper, lurking in remote foothills. It was dubbed Vipera altaica, after the Altai mountain range in which it was discovered.
Out of 30 Altai vipers examined, none exceeded 40cm – the maximum size was 39.9cm. On the surface, it looked similar to the Caucasus meadow viper further west. However, the new snake had a far higher number of belly scales (an average of 146), despite its small size. The belly was also white in some snakes. It had the classic zigzagging pattern, and scientists deemed it to be most closely related to the steppe viper (Vipera renardi). This species lives in Kazakhstan as well, but had no overlap with the new Altai viper. Somehow, this new colony had become separated in the Altai mountains and gradually diverged.
The Altai viper is found in warm steppe country, at altitudes of 200-1200 meters. They prefer areas with an abundance of bushes and shrubs, rather than claustrophobic forests. On the higher mountain ridges to the west, the Altai viper suddenly disappears, and Renard’s viper takes over again.
| 10 | Lotiev’s viper |
A Russian viper with a strong zigzagging pattern. Vipera lotievi is officially listed as “near threatened”, and is still mysterious in many ways. As recently as 2001, only 8 locations for Lotiev’s viper were known to science. Then a series of expeditions were conducted, and 70 colonies within the Caucasus mountains are now mapped out.
Nevertheless, Lotiev’s viper is still relatively rare, inhabiting only a narrow slice of the Great Caucasus mountains of southern Russia. They live at altitudes of 1200-1800 metres, and gravitate towards more open areas, avoiding sheltered forests. That means alpine meadows, scrubland, and treacherous scree slopes. Vipera lotievi is also found on the lower slopes of Mt Elbrus, the highest mountain Europe (and Russia).
Like its neighbours, this is a small viper, rarely exceeding 60cm. A 2007 study found that compared to other species, Lotiev viper venom was the most specialised against insects, alongside the steppe viper, which came second. This study was conducted specifically against field crickets.
The same study found a large proportion of insects in Vipera lotievi’s diet, whereas adders eat none at all. Locusts are one confirmed prey, and after biting one on the stomach, the locust can be immobilised within 6 seconds. Barely any data is available on bites in humans, and it would be wise not to become the first test subject.