Hi. For some reason I found myself starting an article at Wikipedia on "Fer-de-lance" and thinking about editing "Common lancehead" . Since I know hardly anything about snakes, I found myself with a number of questions. Since anyone can edit at Wikipedia without even signing in, the best result would be if people who actually know something would fix or expand these articles (keeping a neutral point of view and preferably citing sources), and then I could go back to birds and science fiction and other things I know about. Hint to academics--this might make a good project for a sufficiently advanced student. Warning to everyone--Wikipedia can be addictive. (I could quit any time, though.)

However, in case no one wants to do that, I'll ask my questions. Is Bothrops atrox found in Central America, or are references to it in C.A. the result of confusion with B. asper? How incorrect is it to call either of these species "fer-de-lance"? Was I right to say that many scientists and hobbyists prefer the names "common lancehead" for atrox and "terciopelo" for asper? How common is the name "barba amarilla" in English? Is it fair to call these snakes "highly venomous", or should that term be reserved for those Australian snakes that can kill 50 mice with some tiny amount of venom?

Thanks,
Jerry

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