Salazar Pit Viper, Named After 'Harry Potter' Character, Found In Assam's Kaziranga National Park

A Salazar Pit Viper, named after the character Salazar Slytherin from JK Rowling’s ‘Harry Potter’ series, has been found in Kaziranga National Park in Assam.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma shared the news about the extraordinary discovery on his social media platform ‘X’ on July 8.

In his enthusiastic announcement, Sarma wrote, “Guess what, kids? Kaziranga just found a real-life Harry Potter snake! Meet the super cool Salazar Pit Viper: it’s green like magic and has a funky red-orange stripe on its head. Isn’t nature awesome?.”

Pit vipers are venomous snakes known for their heat-sensing pit organs located between the eye and nostril. These organs enable them to detect the infrared thermal radiation emitted by their prey, making them formidable hunters in low-light conditions.