Snake Island is located off the coast of Brazil, and from above it looks stunningly beautiful. Unfortunately, it's also home to one of the deadliest snake species in the world and, oh yeah, there are literally thousands of them. The deadly snake that calls Snake Island its home is probably not something you've ever heard of, and that's because this little speck of land off the coast of Brazil is the only place you can actually find it. It's called the golden lancehead, and the name is quite descriptive — the snake is a lovely golden color and its head is shaped like a weapon of war, except if you get stuck by a regular lance, you actually have a chance of survival.
Now, the golden lancehead is not the only member of the lancehead genus. According to Atlas Obscura, lanceheads are common in Brazil and are responsible for around 90% of all snakebite fatalities in that country. If you're bitten by a lancehead in mainland Brazil and you don't receive medical treatment you've got about a 7 percent chance of dying. If you do receive medical treatment, you still have a 3 percent chance of dying, and your symptoms might include kidney failure, brain hemorrhage, intestinal bleeding, necrosis of muscular tissue — you know, standard stuff.
That's mainland lanceheads, though. The venom of the golden lancehead is thought to be as much as five times more potent than its wimpy mainland cousins, so yeah. There's a great reason why Snake Island is off limits to the average tourist.
Watch the video to find out more about how Snake Island is real and absolutely terrifying!
#SnakeIsland #Snakes
Deadly serpents | 0:20
Two times the terror | 1:38
Giant bugs | 2:16
How many snakes? | 3:14
Liquified insides? | 4:16
Modern medicine | 5:25
The pirate legend | 6:08
Evolved to hunt | 7:28
Biopirates | 8:50
A hazardous job | 9:46
Critically endangered | 10:34
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