Abstract
I obtained a group of 5 Japanese pit vipers, Agkistrodon blomhoffi blomhoffi (2 males and 3 females), from a reptile dealer in New Jersey in June 1963 and kept them in captivity. One female bred annually from 1964 to 1967, a second female bred once in 1966, and the third female bred in 1966 and 1967. Of the 7 broods born in captivity, the number of young in each litter varied from 3 to 12 with a mean of 7.0. The conditions of light and temperature in the cages were as follows: in winter, 8 hours of light, with a temperature of 19-21°C during the day and 13-15°C at night; in summer, 16 hours of light, with a temperature variation of from 21 to 29°C; the light and temperature were gradually increased during the spring and decreased during the fall.
