Book VII · The Unclaimed Entry 49 of 55
Bushmaster — unclaimed
The longest viper in the world, and its genus is named after the Fate who cuts the thread
Lachesis muta. Lachesis was the Moira who measured the thread of a life. Muta means silent. The full name reads: the silent one who decides how long you get.
- Book
- Book VII — The Unclaimed
- Marque
- Unclaimed
- Model
- Bushmaster
- Years
- Available immediately
- Origin
- Central and South America
- Namesake
- Bushmaster
- Binomial
- Lachesis muta
Sigil generated from the entry's own name. Every coil, hue and scale in this plate is a function of the string “vacancy-bushmaster”, and of nothing else.
This is the finest binomial in herpetology and the Ophidiary will hear no argument.
The bushmaster is the longest viper in the world and the longest venomous snake in the Americas, reaching well over three metres. It lives in undisturbed primary rainforest, is rarely encountered, and its bite delivers an exceptionally large volume of venom.
The genus name is Lachesis — one of the three Moirai of Greek myth. Clotho spun the thread of a life. Lachesis measured it, deciding its length. Atropos cut it. The species name, muta, means mute or silent: the bushmaster is a pit viper without a rattle, and it vibrates its tail against leaf litter instead, producing a sound that is almost but not quite the warning you would want.
So the animal is called the silent measurer of the length of a life. Whoever named it in the eighteenth century was, quite clearly, having the best day of their career.
A vehicle called the Bushmaster does exist — a protected patrol vehicle used by several armed forces. The road-car name is unclaimed. The Ophidiary would point out that “Lachesis” is also available, is shorter, and would look extremely good on a decklid.
One spins it. One measures it. One cuts it. This is the middle one, and she does not make a sound.
Questions people actually ask
What is the largest viper in the world?
The bushmaster, Lachesis muta, of Central and South American rainforest, which exceeds three metres. It is the longest venomous snake in the Americas.
Provenance of claims
This is a satire with a research habit. Every load-bearing statement above is listed here and labelled, so you can tell which sentences would survive a librarian.
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Documented
Lachesis muta is the longest viper species and the longest venomous snake in the Americas.
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Documented
The genus is named for Lachesis, one of the three Moirai, who measured the thread of life; muta means silent.