PROJETOS

          As an endemic species of the Queimada Grande Island, the Golden Lancehead Viper suffers the threat of extinction along with many other tropical species of our flora and fauna. It is theorized that the Bothrops insularis is descendant of a single couple, which suggests the existence of a restricted gene pool among the specimens. On that perspective, our main objective was to establish the foundation of a viable and more affordable mean of conserving the species ex situ, promoting the preservation of our biological identity as a country. As opposed to conservation programs, our focus is directed towards the maintenance of the Golden Lancehead despite the alterations in the habitat. With the field of reptile in vitro fertilization yet to be fully explored, our focus was on the study of the viability of ACP®-120 as a diluter for semen refrigeration in the Bothrops insularis. By proving the efficacy of this mean for conserving semen for 24 hours, the possibility to conduct in situ researches involving fertilization becomes more and more concrete. This step is a major conquest towards the broadening of the fertilization studies already being conducted in serpents, and helps promote the foundation for future projects.