About Vipera nikolskii Vedmederya, Grubant & Rudajewa, 1986
This viper species, Vipera nikolskii, was formally described by Vedmederya, Grubant & Rudajewa in 1986. Adult Vipera nikolskii are short with thick bodies, reaching a maximum total length including the tail of 680 mm (27 in). According to Golay et al. (1993), the holotype of this species is ZDKU 14704. Vipera nikolskii is distributed across Central Ukraine and southwestern Russia. Mallow et al. (2003) note that this species' distribution is concentrated in the forest-steppe zone of Ukraine's Kharkiv region. Per Golay et al. (1993), the species' type locality is the banks of the Uda River, located between Besljudovka and Vasishtshevo near Kharkiv. Recent surveys by Zinenko et al. (2010) and Strugariu & Zamfirescu (2008) have recorded Vipera nikolskii in eastern and southern Romania, as well as in Basarabia, Republic of Moldova. The species has also recently been found on a ridge in the Low Tatras, Slovakia.
