Echis carinatus
گونڈ (Echis carinatus) is a snake in the family Viperidae, subfamily Viperinae, within the order Squamata of the class Reptilia. It is also called Phoorsa, Carpet viper, Saw-scaled viper and Sindh saw-scaled viper.
Quick facts about Echis carinatus
It falls in the small size class, with an adult body mass of 142 g, and has a lifespan of 17.8 years, with values up to 23.8 years reported. Its clutch or litter size is 14, its egg incubation period is 41 days, and the IUCN Red List classifies it as Least Concern, which is not a threatened category.
- Weight
- 142 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- up to 98 cmsrc for Length
- Lifespan
- 17.8 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Carnivoresrc for Diet
- Longest recorded lifespan
- 23.8 years
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- desert, shrublandsrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 41 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 7.5 – 14src for Young per litter or clutch
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1src for Litters or clutches a year
- Reproduction
- Live birthsrc for Reproduction
- Active
- At night (nocturnal)src for Active
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of Echis carinatus
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
Where does Echis carinatus live?
Not recorded
What is Echis carinatus?
Echis carinatus, known as the Sindh saw-scaled viper, saw-scaled viper, Indian saw-scaled viper, little Indian viper, and by other common names, is a viper species found in parts of the Middle East and Central Asia, and especially the Indian subcontinent. It is the smallest member of the "big four" Indian snakes that are responsible for causing the most snakebite cases and deaths, due to various factors including their frequent occurrence in highly populated regions, and their inconspicuous nature. Like all vipers, the species is venomous. Two subspecies are currently recognized, including the nominate subspecies described here.
From the Wikipedia article “Echis carinatus” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Echis_carinatus&oldid=1374066990), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is Echis carinatus endangered?
Echis carinatus is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.
How is Echis carinatus classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classReptilia
- orderSquamata
- familyViperidae
- genusEchis
- SpeciesEchis carinatus (Schneider, 1801)
Synonyms Boa horatta, Echis carinatus astolae, Echis carinatus multisquamatus, Echis carinatus sinhaleyus, Echis multisquamatus, Echis ziczac, Pseudoboa carinata, Scytale bizonatus, Scythalenus pyramidum, Vipera carinata, Vipera echis, Vipera superciliosa
Other names and names in other languages (28)
- گونڈEnglish
- Carpet viperEnglish
- PhoorsaEnglish
- Saw-scaled viperEnglish
- Sindh saw-scaled viperEnglish
- Sindh saw-scaled viper [sochureki]English
- أفعى منشارية الحراشفArabic
- zmije pavíCzech
- efanDanish
- Almindelig TæppehugormDanish
- SandrasselotterGerman
- Gemeine SandrasselotterGerman
- víbora garibaSpanish
- ફુરસોGujarati
- Arab efaHungarian
- Echide carenatoItalian
- Echide rostratoItalian
- Vipera tappeto carenataItalian
- Vipera tappeto rostrataItalian
- ノコギリヘビJapanese
- फुरसेMarathi
- ZaagschubadderDutch
- efa piaskowaPolish
- Песчаная эфаRussian
- சுருட்டைவிரியன்Tamil
- ನೆತ್ತೆರ್ ಮೂಗೇಲ್Tulu
- Çöl engereğiTurkish
- 鋸鱗蝰Chinese
Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistITISWikidataIUCN Red List
Relatives of Echis carinatus
Other species in the same genus Echis.
Burton’s carpet viper
Echis coloratus
Egyptian saw-scaled viper
Echis pyramidum
African saw-scaled viper
Echis ocellatus
Roman's saw-scaled viper
Echis leucogaster
Hughes' saw-scaled viper
Echis hughesi
Oman saw-scaled viper
Echis omanensis
CompareEchis carinatus vs Burton’s carpet viperEchis carinatus vs Egyptian saw-scaled viperEchis carinatus vs African saw-scaled viperEchis carinatus vs Roman's saw-scaled viper
Common questions
Each answer is written from the sourced facts on this page, and only where they hold the answer.
What kind of animal is the گونڈ?
The گونڈ (Echis carinatus) is a snake, a reptile in the family Viperidae and subfamily Viperinae.
How heavy is the گونڈ?
An adult گونڈ has a body mass of 142 g, which places it in the small size class.
How long does the گونڈ live?
The گونڈ has a lifespan of 17.8 years, and sources report values up to 23.8 years.
Is the گونڈ endangered?
No. The IUCN Red List classifies the گونڈ as Least Concern, which is not a threatened category.
How many young does the گونڈ have?
The گونڈ has 14 young per litter or eggs per clutch, and its egg incubation period is 41 days.
What are other names for the گونڈ?
The گونڈ is also called Phoorsa, Carpet viper, Saw-scaled viper and Sindh saw-scaled viper.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - ReptTraits: a comprehensive dataset of ecological traits in reptiles · CC BY 4.0 · v1-2
Oskyrko, O., Mi, C., Meiri, S. et al. (2024) ReptTraits: a comprehensive dataset of ecological traits in reptiles. Scientific Data 11: 243. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-024-03079-5. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.24572683.v4 - SquamBase 1.0 - a dataset of squamate species traits · CC0 1.0 · 1.0-dryad-v5
Meiri, S. (2024) SquamBase - a database of squamate (Reptilia: Squamata) traits. Global Ecology and Biogeography 33(4): e13812. https://doi.org/10.1111/geb.13812. Data: https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.76hdr7t3b - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Echis carinatus (Echis carinatus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/echis-carinatus
“Echis carinatus (Echis carinatus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/echis-carinatus.
@misc{echis_carinatus_2026,
title = {Echis carinatus (Echis carinatus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/echis-carinatus},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}