title: Atractaspis branchi
text: # Atractaspis branchi
  
  Atractaspis branchi, known commonly as Branch's stiletto snake, is a species of fossorial, venomous snake in the family Atractaspididae. The species is endemic to West Africa.
  
  ## Etymology
  
  The specific name branchi is to honor South African herpetologist William Roy (Bill) Branch, a world-leading expert on African reptiles.
  
  ## Description
  
  The species A. branchi, like other species of its genus, is notable for its unusual skull, allowing it to stab sideways with a fang sticking out of the corner of its mouth. A. branchi has morphological similarities to A. reticulata, but is distinguished by having 19 rows of dorsal scales at midbody.
  
  ## Habitat and geographic range
  
  Atractaspis branchi lives in primary rainforest and rainforest edges in the western part of the Upper Guinea forests in Guinea and Liberia.
  
  