There are many snakes on the planet with potent and fatal poisoning on humans, but not every reptile with deadly weapons seeks to use it in relation to people. That is why the most venomous of land snakes is not at all guilty of a large number of human victims. The same can be said about the marine representatives - the owner of not the strongest of poisons is recognized as the most deadly. Therefore, not every person, in response to a question about which snake is the most poisonous, will name the most dangerous.
Vipers
The viper family includes many subfamilies, genera and species of poisonous snakes. The names of some of them are mentioned in this article, and we will certainly introduce you to them. Several genera of vipers, united in a subfamily with the same name, differing from each other in many respects, are very common on the planet, including in Russia and the former Soviet republics. Basically, these are reptiles of small size - up to a meter in length, with the exception of the genus of giant vipers - these individuals are much larger. For example, the longest of the inhabitants of the territory of Russia - Gyurza - grows up to 2 meters.
The poison of vipers is one of the most toxic. The structure of the jaws and the mechanics of their work during the attack is such that, unlike most other poisonous snakes, their bite would be more correctly called a blow. However, animals are mostly nocturnal and do not attack without cause. A person dies from a viper bite in the absence of medical intervention in a few days or even weeks, and not in a hundred percent of cases, but it is impossible not to mention them, since these are representatives of the few poisonous snakes living in Russia.
Viper-like mortal (Australian tenontail)
The species was named for its resemblance to vipers. It lives in Australia, on the island of New Guinea and on the nearby islands. The length of an adult does not usually exceed a meter. Fangs are quite large. The color is heterogeneous light brown in different shades; there are several darker longitudinal stripes on the body. It lives in a wooded area, thickets of shrubs. It hunts at night for small mammals, birds, snakes. Viviparous, one brood consists of 10-20, rarely up to 30 cubs. When a danger is detected, it freezes and does not betray itself to a direct approach, which is fraught with an accidental meeting with it. The poison paralyzes the nervous system, in the absence of a neutralizing drug, the probability of death from a bite is about 50%.
Rattlesnake
The generalized name of more than two hundred species of poisonous snakes belonging to the pit subfamily. Pits are temperature sensitive depressions between the eyes and nostrils, detecting temperature changes with an accuracy of 0.1 ° C, which allows you to successfully hunt in the dark.
Indeed, two genera can be called explosive, having a keratinized tail end, the elements of which, when vibrated, emit a warning sound, similar to crackling. They live in Asia and on both American continents. These are small and medium sized snakes, the largest of which is a rhombic rattlesnake, sometimes it reaches a length of almost 2.5 meters, but the length of an average individual usually does not exceed one and a half meters.
They themselves do not attack, like most poisonous snakes. Noticing a person, they warn with a sound of their presence. However, if they decide that they are in danger, they will attack silently. Mortality from a rattlesnake bite decreased to 4% due to the created serums, but in the absence of timely measures, deaths can occur (the closer to a person’s head a snake’s bite, the greater the probability of death), as well as other tragic consequences in the form of loss of a bitten limb, so as the poison of these snakes does not just violate the process of blood coagulation, causes paralysis and shortness of breath, and in a short time leads to necrosis of the tissues. In addition, their jaws are so strong that they even bite through thick leather shoes. Young snakes are very dangerous, they do not know how to control a portion of the allocated poison and do not yet have a rattle at the end of the tail.
Kaisaka or labaria
Also related to pitheads, an inhabitant of America kills a lot of people with her swift attack. The poison acts quickly, causing hemorrhage and rapidly spreading edema, leading to death. The largest spearhead of its kind - reaches a length of 2.5 meters. It can be brown or gray with well-defined diamonds on the back. For the characteristic coloring of the chin is nicknamed the "yellow beard."
Bushmaster, or Surukuku
The closest relative of truly rattlesnakes has a solid empty tail end that makes noise not by itself, but from its contact with the surface on which the animal moves.
The range of this species is South America. Surukuku is the largest of the venomous snakes of these places and among all those belonging to the pithead subfamily. It reaches a length of 3.5, rarely 4 meters. Poisonous teeth grow up to 4 centimeters. He prefers loneliness for almost 20 years of his life, so only 25 facts of a person’s bite are known, of which 5 ended in the death of the victim.
Cobras
The combined name of about 20 species of poisonous snakes of the aspid family. Their distinctive feature is the so-called “hood” - a fragment of the body that changes size due to the ability of the animal to push apart the ribs while in a state of excitement. It is difficult for a non-specialist to distinguish a calm cobra from many other snakes. They live in numerous territories, mainly in Africa and Asia. The substance by which some cobras hit their prey is considered one of the most toxic poisonous snakes in the arsenal. Cobras are not aggressive for no reason and usually warn of themselves.
Their attack consists of several shots, one ending with an accurate bite. Some species are able to accurately throw poison at a distance, aiming in the eyes of the victim. The bite mechanism is similar to chewing.
The largest of the poisonous snakes in the world, the king cobra, also belongs to this genus, otherwise the hamadriad. It can reach a length of 5.5 meters or more, since with a life expectancy of about 30 years it grows constantly.
Tiger snake
Belongs to the aspid family. It lives in Australia and on the neighboring islands - New Guinea and Tasmania. It is considered one of the most poisonous snakes living on land. Viviparous, not very large - usually reaches a length of two meters, no more. Coloring can be different - from gray to reddish, all on the body have almost imperceptible or pronounced transverse stripes. There is even a black look. The poison is so strong that small victims die almost instantly, a person without treatment dies in more than 90% of cases from suffocation and paralysis, experiencing severe pain in the bite area.
Black Mamba
One of the most dangerous and poisonous snakes in Africa is also the second largest in the world among congeners with deadly bites. Often the body of a mamba exceeds three meters in length. It is not considered aggressive, but if necessary it can attack a person and inflict bites, leading to rapid death from highly toxic poison, causing paralysis and suffocation. Recorded facts of the death of people less than an hour after they were stung by a black mamba.
The animal is able to move at high speed - up to almost 20 km / h. Despite the numerous photos of poisonous snakes of this species, depicting them in black, the color of animals varies from various shades of olive to gray-brown with a characteristic metallic sheen. They got their name for the color of the mouth, the cut of which resembles a smile.
Kraits
This species of the aspid family includes several species that live in South and Southeast Asia. They do not differ in large size - representatives of the largest species grow up to 2.5 meters. The poisons of all kraits are neurotoxic, although they differ in composition. A common characteristic is the presence of a chemical compound in them, which, when directly penetrated into the blood or enters the body in large quantities, can very quickly lead to death due to direct effects on the brain.
The Indian krayt, or blue bungarus, which is often found in human settlements and leads both night and day lifestyles, takes second place in India after cobras in the number of human deaths for which it is considered responsible. The most poisonous of kraits is Malay.
Mesh brown
According to some studies, it is precisely its venom that occupies the second most toxic place among land snakes. The animal lives in Australia, New Guinea and Indonesia. Adult snakes can be painted in a wide variety of colors - from yellow to silver and black, so you should not focus on the name when identifying this animal. Medium sized snakes - those that grow longer than 2 meters, are considered very large. Active during the day, but they themselves are not the first to attack. However, if it is impossible to avoid a collision, they behave very aggressively: they raise their heads high, taking the shape of the letter S, then a throw and a bite are possible. In the case of self-defense, these animals rarely release a lethal dose of poison, so the probability of death even in the absence of treatment is from 10 to 20%.
Mulga
Again the asp and again from Australia. Otherwise, the brown king. Often it is confused with a brown net due to coincident habitats and habitats. It differs from many other poisonous snakes with a thick neck and the ability to make it flatter and wider at the moment of excitation (not to be confused with a cobra hood). The size of large individuals is about 3 meters. The poison is very toxic, and if it is defeated, it is likely to die in the absence of an antidote.
The danger also lies in the snake's lifestyle - the mulga is very mobile and prefers proximity to people, sneaks into houses, seduced by coolness. Almost universally distributed on the Australian mainland.
Bipartite glandular snake
Also known as blue coral snake or asp. A very bright and unusual snake less than 1.5 meters long (rightly related to the genus of decorated aspids), which has a poison unique to these animals, and indeed to vertebrate creatures. In composition, it is closer to the substance with which scorpions and spiders strike their victims. In addition, poison is produced in a coral snake in a special gland that occupies a quarter of the entire body.
The bite leads to damage to the entire nervous system and painful general convulsions. A person in case of injury may die from suffocation. However, the coral aspid, nicknamed the killer of killers, is very rarely found in the way of people, it is not easy to find it on purpose. When hunting small animals, birds, and other poisonous snakes in natural conditions, it can only cause harm to humans through careless physical contact.
Harlequin Asp
Small (up to one meter), bright poisonous snake, common in some regions of the USA and Mexico. Often settles not far from people, but even in the case of direct contact with them does not always bite, and injects poison only in a third of all cases. The fangs are small, up to 3 mm, but during a poisonous bite, an individual produces a lethal dose of poison for humans. In case of survival, life-long complications in the kidneys are likely.
African Boomslang, or Tree Snake
Animals up to 2 meters in size, the color is diverse in the palette from bright green plain, spotty and striped to black, depending on the places where he lives and hunts. Remaining invisible, a tree snake easily finds victims among birds and small animals. It has an excellent reaction - it can bite a bird in flight. It does not conflict with people, if you do not try to pick it up. The location of the teeth inclined and mouths slightly moved inward to attack a person is not very suitable, but in the case of defense, an individual can strike very toxic (half the toxicity of Indian cobra poison), poison that flows down the grooves on the teeth, which causes paralysis, internal bleeding, and tissue destruction. Without an urgent blood transfusion, death will occur. So in the 50s of the last century, when trying to catch a snake, the famous American zoologist Karl Paterson Schmidt died.
Sand efa
Small - less than 80 centimeters, a very poisonous snake. In Africa, more people die from its bites than from all other snakes in general. Saved from death often lose their bitten limbs, as the poison causes cell death. In addition, it provokes bleeding in the mucous membranes - blood vessels burst even around the eyeball.
Efa does not attack itself, it warns of itself by the rustling, which it emits due to friction of each other's skin areas. Defending itself, it takes a distinctive posture for it - the head is located between two half rings formed by the body and tail. Able to make a sudden throw up to three meters. Able to move sideways.
In the former Soviet Asian republics there is a subspecies - Central Asian efa.
Taipans
The coastal taipan, in spite of the fact that it is not the most poisonous snake in the world, is universally recognized as the most deadly. Its common name is a cruel (ferocious) snake. The danger lies in the nature and lifestyle: the animal is active during the day and very aggressive, has a high speed, often hunts in places of residence and human activity. It attacks instantly, inflicting several bites. Before the invention of the antidote, almost all incidents involving a taipan bite ended in human death. Even now, only half of the victims manage to save. The poison causes paralysis, including respiratory organs, disrupts blood coagulation, which leads to death within a few hours.
The snake reaches 3 meters in length, but thanks to its color and lightning speed, it is almost impossible to notice it in time and escape from the attack. It is found in Australia and New Guinea.
Taipan McCoy, who lives in a dry desert area inside the mainland, has a fairly calm disposition. Despite the fact that most scientists recognize it as the most poisonous snake living on land (poison is 180 times stronger than cobra poison), cases of bites and, consequently, human deaths are rare. This is the only Australian snake that changes color depending on the outside temperature. The colder it is around, the darker its color.
Sometimes you can find the name parademansion, which is an obsolete name for this species.
