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Maya Perspectives on Vipers: Traditional Knowledge, Use, and Perceptions in three Communities in Eastern Yucatán, Mexico.

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Title: Maya Perspectives on Vipers: Traditional Knowledge, Use, and Perceptions in three Communities in Eastern Yucatán, Mexico.
Alternate Title: Perspectivas mayas sobre las víboras: conocimiento tradicional, uso y percepción en tres comunidades del oriente de Yucatán, México.
Authors: NAHUAT-CERVERA, PEDRO E., ARANA-RAVELL, JUAN MANUEL, CORAL LARA, DIANA M., MUÑOZ UICAB, EDITH G., PASCUAL-ORTIZ, HILDA PAOLA, VÁZQUEZ SOLÍS, ELISA, BARRIENTOS-MEDINA, ROBERTO C.
Source: Estudios de Cultura Maya. primavera/verano2026, Vol. 67, p141-162. 22p.
Subjects: VIPERIDAE, TRADITIONAL knowledge, POISONOUS snakes, NATURE conservation, ETHNOBIOLOGY, MAYAS
Geographic Terms: YUCATAN (Mexico : State), MEXICO
Abstract (English): Vipers (family Viperidae) are snakes with venom and solenoglyphous dentition. Four species of vipers are distributed throughout the Yucatán state, which have been closely associated with the traditional uses and knowledge of the Maya culture; however, projects focused on characterizing this relation are scarce. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the traditional uses, knowledge, and perception of vipers among residents of three localities in eastern Yucatán, Mexico. The communities considered were Uayma, Xocén, and Yalcobá; in each, semi-structured interviews (n = 100) were conducted to determine the use, perceptions, and transmission of traditional knowledge surrounding vipers. In general, the inhabitants recognize the Yucatán Neotropical Rattlesnake (Crotalus tzabcan) as the most common viper, followed by the Fer-de-lance (Bothrops asper). Regarding traditional nomenclature, the Yucatecan Cantil (Agkistrodon russeolus) was the species with the greatest number of names. The Yucatán Neotropical Rattlesnake (C. tzabcan) was the only species for which any use was recorded, including use as food, traditional medicine, and ornamentation. Most of the villagers perceive snakes negatively and, based on their empirical knowledge, consider it justified to kill them. On the other hand, the highest percentage of respondents indicated that vipers have declined, along with the traditional knowledge associated with them. It is necessary to further investigate the traditional uses and knowledge of vipers among rural communities in the Yucatán, as well as promote reassessment projects aimed at the conservation of this important biological group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Abstract (Spanish): Las víboras (familia Viperidae) son serpientes que poseen veneno y tienen dentadura solenoglifa. En Yucatán habitan cuatro especies, las cuales han estado estrechamente relacionadas con la cultura maya, sin embargo, los trabajos enfocados en caracterizar esta relación son escasos, por lo que el objetivo de este estudio fue conocer el uso, los saberes tradicionales y la percepción sobre las víboras por los pobladores de tres localidades del oriente de Yucatán, México. Las comunidades consideradas fueron Uayma, Xocén y Yalcobá, en cada una se realizaron entrevistas semiestructuradas (n = 100) para determinar el aprovechamiento, la percepción y la transmisión de los saberes tradicionales en torno a las víboras. Los pobladores reconocen como la especie más común a la cascabel yucateca (Crotalus tzabcan), seguida por la nauyaca real (Bothrops asper). Respecto a la nomenclatura tradicional, la especie que cuenta con más nombres para identificarla fue el cantil yucateco (Agkistrodon russeolus). La cascabel yucateca (C. tzabcan) fue la única especie que registró algún uso, al ser aprovechada como alimento, en medicina tradicional y como ornamentación. La mayoría de los pobladores consideran a las serpientes como algo negativo y dentro de su conocimiento empírico es correcto matarlas. El mayor porcentaje señaló que las víboras han disminuido, al igual que el conocimiento tradicional relacionado con ellas. Es necesario profundizar en el aprovechamiento y conocimiento de las víboras por parte de las comunidades rurales de Yucatán, así como promover proyectos de revalorización para impulsar la conservación de este importante grupo biológico. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Database: Referencia Latina
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PubType: Academic Journal
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  Data: Maya Perspectives on Vipers: Traditional Knowledge, Use, and Perceptions in three Communities in Eastern Yucatán, Mexico.
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  Data: Perspectivas mayas sobre las víboras: conocimiento tradicional, uso y percepción en tres comunidades del oriente de Yucatán, México.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22NAHUAT-CERVERA%2C+PEDRO+E%2E%22">NAHUAT-CERVERA, PEDRO E.</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22ARANA-RAVELL%2C+JUAN+MANUEL%22">ARANA-RAVELL, JUAN MANUEL</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22CORAL+LARA%2C+DIANA+M%2E%22">CORAL LARA, DIANA M.</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22MUÑOZ+UICAB%2C+EDITH+G%2E%22">MUÑOZ UICAB, EDITH G.</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22PASCUAL-ORTIZ%2C+HILDA+PAOLA%22">PASCUAL-ORTIZ, HILDA PAOLA</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22VÁZQUEZ+SOLÍS%2C+ELISA%22">VÁZQUEZ SOLÍS, ELISA</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22BARRIENTOS-MEDINA%2C+ROBERTO+C%2E%22">BARRIENTOS-MEDINA, ROBERTO C.</searchLink>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Estudios+de+Cultura+Maya%22">Estudios de Cultura Maya</searchLink>. primavera/verano2026, Vol. 67, p141-162. 22p.
– Name: Subject
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22VIPERIDAE%22">VIPERIDAE</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22TRADITIONAL+knowledge%22">TRADITIONAL knowledge</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22POISONOUS+snakes%22">POISONOUS snakes</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22NATURE+conservation%22">NATURE conservation</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22ETHNOBIOLOGY%22">ETHNOBIOLOGY</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22MAYAS%22">MAYAS</searchLink>
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22YUCATAN+%28Mexico+%3A+State%29%22">YUCATAN (Mexico : State)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22MEXICO%22">MEXICO</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract (English)
  Group: Ab
  Data: Vipers (family Viperidae) are snakes with venom and solenoglyphous dentition. Four species of vipers are distributed throughout the Yucatán state, which have been closely associated with the traditional uses and knowledge of the Maya culture; however, projects focused on characterizing this relation are scarce. Therefore, the objective of this study was to examine the traditional uses, knowledge, and perception of vipers among residents of three localities in eastern Yucatán, Mexico. The communities considered were Uayma, Xocén, and Yalcobá; in each, semi-structured interviews (n = 100) were conducted to determine the use, perceptions, and transmission of traditional knowledge surrounding vipers. In general, the inhabitants recognize the Yucatán Neotropical Rattlesnake (Crotalus tzabcan) as the most common viper, followed by the Fer-de-lance (Bothrops asper). Regarding traditional nomenclature, the Yucatecan Cantil (Agkistrodon russeolus) was the species with the greatest number of names. The Yucatán Neotropical Rattlesnake (C. tzabcan) was the only species for which any use was recorded, including use as food, traditional medicine, and ornamentation. Most of the villagers perceive snakes negatively and, based on their empirical knowledge, consider it justified to kill them. On the other hand, the highest percentage of respondents indicated that vipers have declined, along with the traditional knowledge associated with them. It is necessary to further investigate the traditional uses and knowledge of vipers among rural communities in the Yucatán, as well as promote reassessment projects aimed at the conservation of this important biological group. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract (Spanish)
  Group: Ab
  Data: Las víboras (familia Viperidae) son serpientes que poseen veneno y tienen dentadura solenoglifa. En Yucatán habitan cuatro especies, las cuales han estado estrechamente relacionadas con la cultura maya, sin embargo, los trabajos enfocados en caracterizar esta relación son escasos, por lo que el objetivo de este estudio fue conocer el uso, los saberes tradicionales y la percepción sobre las víboras por los pobladores de tres localidades del oriente de Yucatán, México. Las comunidades consideradas fueron Uayma, Xocén y Yalcobá, en cada una se realizaron entrevistas semiestructuradas (n = 100) para determinar el aprovechamiento, la percepción y la transmisión de los saberes tradicionales en torno a las víboras. Los pobladores reconocen como la especie más común a la cascabel yucateca (Crotalus tzabcan), seguida por la nauyaca real (Bothrops asper). Respecto a la nomenclatura tradicional, la especie que cuenta con más nombres para identificarla fue el cantil yucateco (Agkistrodon russeolus). La cascabel yucateca (C. tzabcan) fue la única especie que registró algún uso, al ser aprovechada como alimento, en medicina tradicional y como ornamentación. La mayoría de los pobladores consideran a las serpientes como algo negativo y dentro de su conocimiento empírico es correcto matarlas. El mayor porcentaje señaló que las víboras han disminuido, al igual que el conocimiento tradicional relacionado con ellas. Es necesario profundizar en el aprovechamiento y conocimiento de las víboras por parte de las comunidades rurales de Yucatán, así como promover proyectos de revalorización para impulsar la conservación de este importante grupo biológico. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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        Value: 10.19130/iifl.ecm.2026.1/0Z100Y74810X25
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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      Pagination:
        PageCount: 22
        StartPage: 141
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: VIPERIDAE
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: TRADITIONAL knowledge
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: POISONOUS snakes
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      – SubjectFull: NATURE conservation
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      – SubjectFull: ETHNOBIOLOGY
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      – SubjectFull: MAYAS
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      – SubjectFull: YUCATAN (Mexico : State)
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