US EPA

1494114 

Journal Article 

The efficacy of a naphthalene and sulfur formulation to repel the venomous snake Vipera palaestinae in Israel 

Moran, S; Vaisman, S; Tayar, Edi 

2008 

Yes 

Applied Herpetology
ISSN: 1570-7539
EISSN: 1570-7547 

5 

3 

225-232 

English 

10.1163/157075408785911011 

WOS:000261039100002 

https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-70349189418&doi=10.1163%2f157075408785911011&partnerID=40&md5=2b8a879da63b145465dad1ff67d72379
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The repellence efficacy of pellets containing naphthalene
and sulfur against the Palestine viper Vipera palaestinae (Viperidae) Was studied. This species
is the only venomous snake ill the densely populated central and northern parts of Israel. and
bites many humans every year. The experiments were performed in an outdoor earth-floor arena. Two
cages, each containing a single rodent (Meriones tristrami, Gerbilidae) as bait, were located at
opposite ends of the arena, one of them protected by a pellet strip of naphthalene and sulfur
formulation, and the other unprotected. After an acclimatization period naive vipers were
introduced into the arena, each one seperately. The experiments were conducted in two parts of
seven trials, each part oil the opposite end of the arena. Five snakes avoided the protected
section of the arena. and eight reached the protected cages. The conclusion was that the
formulation failed to repel the vipers. 

Naphthalene; snake repellent; sulfur; Vipera palaestinae