Snakes of Central and Western Africa

The idea for ​​the book Snakes of Central and Western Africa occurred to us 10 years ago, after we noted the lack of a monograph gathering available information on snakes from Sub-Saharan Africa. Our respective complementary experience convinced us to collaborate actively for this purpose.

Although they have many similarities and though some species are common, snakes of West and Central Africa differ sensibly. Based on the morphological characters, ecology and recent phylogenetic analysis of the most widespread or emblematic species, we discuss here the validity of taxa - or the existence of possible species complexes - by favoring the field approach.

This unique book describes all the snake species from Mauritania to the DRC, including Rwanda and Burundi at East, and Angola to South. Snake identification is facilitated by many keys to genera and species, detailed description of each taxon with drawings of head scales and distribution maps of specimens mentioned in the literature or encountered by us. Most of the species are illustrated with one or more photos by experts that made a valuable contribution.

Jean-Philippe Chippaux is a director of research at the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, a leading expert on venomous snakes and snakebites, and the author of Snake Venoms and Envenomations. Kate Jackson is an associate professor of biology at Whitman College, a leading expert on African snakes and the herpetology of Central Africa, and the author of the scientific memoir Mean and Lowly Things: Snakes, Science, and Survival in the Congo. Together, Chippaux and Jackson are the authors of Snakes of Central and Western Africa.