For the most daring and courageous, Pousadela Village has prepared a route with more adrenaline and adventure, the Viper Route that has 2.7 km of full communion with nature.
The horned viper (Vipera latastei) is one of the snake species that exists in Portugal, and has the particularity of being poisonous. But calm down, before you start imagining a horror film of the Anaconda genre, and that will be attacked at any moment, we will make known a little more about the species.
It is also important to say that the horned viper only attacks people when it feels threatened. Don’t worry, when this happens, your bite is usually not fatal.
But calm down, before you start imagining a horror movie
It is good to know that it is a small snake that feeds mainly on rats and frogs, with a length ranging between 50 and 60 centimeters. His prominent “muzzle” that resembles a small horn, was who gave him the name of a horned viper.
This reptile hibernates between October and March in the coldest areas of the interior of the country, while the breeding season takes place in September. When it comes to food, his strategy is very clear and lazy, he hunts during the day getting static waiting for a snack to pass by, then bites him and lets the poison act, only when his prey is immobile does he bother to eat it.
Not only is this tour made of vipers, for the lovers of the songs of the birds, during this adventure you can observe a great diversity of species such as the royal star, the nightingale, the blackberry pope or the hawk. Also noteworthy is a very pespineta and agile mammal like the gineta, despite being lucky to see this animal, because it is more nocturnal, spending the day sleeping in caves, hollow trees, rocks or any kind of shelter that protects it.
No doubt you can not miss this adventure, risk without fear, and you will see that you will like it. But beware, it might not be a good idea to pick up vipers or any other snake you can’t identify. Respect the nature and space of small animals and everything will go well.
