An Indian researchers’ team have discovered a new species of green pit vipers and decided to name it after a Harry Potter character, Salazar Slytherin, colliding the fictional world with the scientific one.
Their findings were published this month in the journal Zoosystematics and Evolution, reports CNN.
For those not familiar with Harry Potter, Salazar Slytherin was one of the founders of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, along with his friends Godric Gryffindor, Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff.
They were the most powerful witches and wizards of their time in the Harry Potter world and also the namesakes of the four Hogwarts houses.
Slytherin, partly known for his ability to talk to snakes, is linked to the animals -- the snake is, after all, the symbol of the Slytherin Hogwarts house and for this reason the researchers chose the name Trimeresurus Salazar.
In the research, the team suggests the snake commonly be known as Salazar's pit viper, the CNN’s report added.
The pit vipers in the genus Trimeresurus are venomous, and found throughout East and Southeast Asia. This species was found in India, but there are at least 48 total species of this genus found in the region.
One of the things that makes this particular pit viper stand out, though, is the orange-reddish stripe found on the side of the head in males.
