They hiss, slither, and, regrettably for people and unwary victims, bite. According to the World Health Organization, snakes bite around 5.4 million people each year, resulting in 81,000 to 138,000 fatalities.
Toxins created in a modified salivary gland that the animal subsequently injects into food using its teeth are used by venomous snakes to kill their victims. Researchers stated in the journal Frontiers of Ecology and Evolution in 2019 that such venom has developed over millions of years to trigger severe responses in victims ranging from immobility and bleeding to tissue death and inflammation. Here are 10 snakes whose venom not only kills tiny prey but may also kill people.
1. Inland taipan (Oxyuranus microlepidotus)
According to the International Journal of Neuropharmacology, the inland taipan is one of the most poisonous snakes, with only a trace of its venom killing prey (or human victims). They reside in the clay fissures of the floodplains of Queensland and South Australia, typically inside the pre-dug burrows of other animals. The inland taipan, which lives in more distant areas than the coastal taipan, seldom comes into touch with people, according to the Australian Museum. When attacked, the taipan curls its body into a tight S-shape before shooting out in a single rapid bite or many bites. The hyaluronidase enzyme is a key component of its venom that distinguishes it from other species. This enzyme, according to a 2020 edition of Poisons magazine (Novel Strategies for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Snakebites), enhances the rate of toxins absorption throughout the victim's body.
2. Coastal taipan (Oxyuranus scutellatus)
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3. King cobra (Ophiophagus hannah)
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According to the Natural History Museum in London, the king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) is the world's longest poisonous snake, reaching up to 18 feet (5.4 m). According to the Smithsonian Institution, the snake's keen vision enables it to detect a moving human from approximately 330 feet (100 meters). When attacked, a king cobra will flare out its "hood," or the skin over its head, using specific ribs and muscles in its neck; these snakes can also raise their heads off the ground nearly a third of their total length, according to the San Diego Zoo.
The snake's claim to fame is not so much the power of its venom as it is the volume injected into victims: each bite delivers roughly 7 milliliters (about 0.24 fluid ounces) of venom, and the snake attacks with three or four bites in fast succession, according to the Fresno Zoo. According to Sean Carroll, a molecular researcher at the University of Maryland, a single bite may kill a person in 15 minutes and an adult elephant in only a few hours.
4. Banded krait (Bungarus fasciatus)
The banded krait (Bungarus fasciatus) moves slowly throughout the day and bites significantly more often after nightfall. According to 2016 research published in the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, snake venom may paralyze muscles and prevent the diaphragm from moving. This prevents air from entering the lungs, resulting in asphyxia.
5. Saw-scaled viper (Echis carinatus)
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The saw-scaled viper (Echis carinatus) is the smallest of India's "Big Four," along with Russell's viper, common krait (Bungarus caeruleus), and Indian cobra (Naja naja), which are regarded to be responsible for the majority of bites and fatalities.
When threatened, this viper begins "sizzling" by rubbing together specific serrated scales, rather than the usual "hissing" sound associated with snakes, according to a journal statement. When bitten by this viper, a human will experience regional swelling and agony, as well as probable bleeding. According to the educational association Understanding Animal Research, since the venom interferes with a person's capacity to coagulate blood, it may cause internal bleeding and, eventually, severe renal failure. Hydration and antivenom (this snake has nine forms of antivenom) should be delivered within hours after the bite for a human to survive, according to Understanding Animal Research.
6. Russell's viper (Daboia russelii)
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According to a study published on March 25, 2021, in the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases, snake bites cause around 58,000 deaths in India each year, with Russell's viper (Daboia russelii) accounting for the bulk of these fatalities. Researchers stated in the journal Toxins in 2021 that this species is one of the most lethal of the real vipers.
In Sri Lanka, where this nocturnal viper prefers to slumber in rice fields, they are responsible for a high rate of fatality among paddy farmers during harvest season. Researchers noted in the Handbook of Clinical Neurology in 2014 that the snake's venom may cause a terrible buffet of symptoms, including abrupt renal failure, severe bleeding, and multi-organ damage. Some of the venom's coagulation components may cause acute strokes and, in rare circumstances, symptoms akin to Sheehan's syndrome, in which the pituitary gland ceases releasing specific hormones. According to the manual, victims often die from renal failure.
7. Eastern tiger snake (Notechis scutatus)
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The eastern tiger snake (Notechis scutatus), which is native to southeast Australia's highlands and grasslands, is called for the yellow and black stripes on its body, however not all populations have that pattern, according to the Australian Museum. Its strong venom may kill people within 15 minutes of a bite and is responsible for at least one fatality each year on average, according to the University of Adelaide.
8. Boomslang (Dispholidus typus)
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Herpetologist Karl Patterson Schmidt died around 24 hours after being bitten on the thumb by a juvenile boomslang (also known as a South African green tree snake), researchers reported in the journal Biochimica et Biophysica Acta in 2017. Schmidt at The Field Museum in Chicago had been tasked with identifying the snake. Schmidt, like others in the field at the time (1890), felt that rear-fanged snakes like the boomslang (Dispholidus typus) couldn't generate a venom dosage lethal to humans. They were mistaken.
According to the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, the boomslang, which may be found across Africa but is most common in Swaziland, Botswana, Namibia, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe, is one of the most poisonous of the so-called rear-fanged snakes. When not in use, these snakes may fold their fangs back into their mouths. According to the Museum, this snake, like other dangerous snakes, produces hemotoxic venom that causes victims to bleed inside and externally.
The boomslang has an egg-shaped head, huge eyes, and a bright-green striped body. According to the South African National Biodiversity Institute, when threatened, the snake may balloon its neck to double its size and show a brilliantly colored flap of skin between its scales. A boomslang bite might result in a horrific death. According to Scientific American: "Victims have significant muscle and brain hemorrhaging, and blood will begin to pour out of every conceivable outlet, including the gums and nostrils, as well as the smallest of incisions. Blood will also begin to travel through the victim's body via their feces, urine, saliva, and vomit until they die." If a victim can acquire it in time, there is an antivenom for the boomslang.
9. Fer-de-lance (Bothrops asper)
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According to 1984 research published in the journal Toxicon, a bite from a fer-de-lance (Bothrops asper) may color a person's bodily tissue black as it starts to die. According to 2001 research published in the journal Toxicon, these pit vipers, which occur in Central and South America and are between 3.9 and 8.2 feet (1.2 and 2.5 m) long and weigh up to 13 pounds (6 kg), are responsible for over half of all snakebite venom poisonings in Central America. A bite from this snake may induce bleeding because its venom includes an anticoagulant (a chemical that prevents blood clotting).
If that isn't enough to put you off, consider this: according to the University of Costa Rica, a female may give birth to 90 ferocious offspring.
10. Black mamba (Dendroaspis polylepis)
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The black mamba (Dendroaspis polylepis), Africa's deadliest snake, can kill a human with only two droplets of venom. Black mambas are brownish in hue and were named from the dark, inky tint within their jaws. They are around 8 feet (2.5 meters) long and can go at a speed of 12 mph (19 km/h).
The long snakes are born with two to three droplets of venom in each fang, making them fatal biters from the start. According to Kruger National Park, by maturity, they may store up to 20 drips in each of their teeth. A bite from this African snake is almost usually fatal if not treated.
The venom of a black mamba interferes with activity at a junction where nerves and muscles link, resulting in paralysis, according to Ryan Blumenthal of the University of Pretoria in The Conversation. Because the venom is also cardiotoxic, it has the potential to induce cardiac arrest. According to Blumenthal, this was the situation with a South African man who was bitten by a black mamba on his index finger. Within 20 minutes of arriving at the hospital, he was already in cardiac arrest. Despite being treated with antivenom, the guy died days later, according to Blumenthal.
Scientists are unsure how many people are killed by black mambas each year, but Blumenthal believes they are responsible for the majority of snake-related fatalities in southern Africa.
Source: www.livescience.com
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