{"id":734,"date":"2011-06-05T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-06-05T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/?p=734"},"modified":"2011-08-01T20:40:30","modified_gmt":"2011-08-01T20:40:30","slug":"le-vipere-che-arrivano-dal-cielo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/le-vipere-che-arrivano-dal-cielo\/","title":{"rendered":"Le Vipere che Arrivano dal Cielo"},"content":{"rendered":"

A few days ago we met an English couple who were renting a holiday house here in our village. The couple told us that they\u2019d clambered down the rocky slope to the river Magra near the ponte medievale <\/strong>(Medieval bridge), and whilst pushing their way through brambles they had been confronted by an enormous two meter long snake. They told their story to some of the villagers who promptly identified the serpente<\/strong> (snake) as una vipera<\/strong> (a viper), and explained that it was a well known fact that vipere<\/strong> were thrown from helicopters and set loose in the environment.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Vipera-aspis-aspis-1\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Va bene<\/strong>, firstly, just to set the record straight: L’aspide, o vipera (<\/strong><\/span><\/span>Vipera aspis<\/strong><\/span><\/a>, Linnaeus, 1758) \u00e8 un serpente della famiglia Viperidae, diffuso in Europa occidentale.<\/strong>\u00a0Descrizione: Lunga al massimo 94 cm<\/span>, mediamente sui 60-65 cm. <\/strong>(The asp, or viper (<\/em><\/span><\/span>Vipera aspis<\/em><\/span><\/a>,<\/em> Linnaeus, 1758) is a snake belonging to the family Viperidae, found throughout western Europe. Description: Maximum length 94 cm<\/span>, average 60 \u2013 65 cm.)<\/em> In other words a 2 meter long vipera<\/strong> does not exist here in Italy. There are, on the other hand, snakes such as the frustone<\/strong> \u2013 whip snake, and verdone<\/strong> \u2013 grass snake that do grow to 2 meters, and in fact the description given to me by the English couple told me that it was a verdone<\/strong>, which although aggressive is not poisonous.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Now onto the famous much cited lancio di vipere da elicotteri<\/strong> (vipers thrown from helicopters), which for many Italians, especially the contadini<\/strong> (peasants), is an unquestionable fact!<\/span><\/p>\n

The thesis behind the story is that vipers are thrown from helicopters by environmentalists who’s aim it is to increase the population of these creatures.<\/span><\/p>\n

La diffusione della storia<\/strong> \u2013 How the story spread<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

This story is in fact an urban legend which has no basis in reality. It first came to light in France during the 1970’s and from there it gradually spread south into Switzerland and Piedmont arriving in Italia centrosettentrionale<\/strong> (central northern Italy) in the 90\u2019s. In the last few years it has also made its way into Italia centromeridionale<\/strong> (central southern Italy). This legend has become so firmly rooted in popular culture that anyone disputing it is immediately labeled as un bugiardo<\/strong> (a liar).<\/span><\/p>\n

Le varianti<\/strong> \u2013 The variations<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

There are a number of variations to the story regarding the method of dispersing the vipers, the means of transport used to carry them, and the responsible parties:<\/span><\/p>\n

Imballaggio<\/strong>: \u2013 Packaging: <\/span><\/span><\/p>\n