Snake Venom

Intro “Each year around 1 million people world wide are bitten by snakes, and around 30,000 to 40,000 of the snake bite victims die from the venomous injection of a venomous snake. Of the 2,000 species of snakes, about 400 are venomous. The cobra, coral snake, and rattlesnake are common examples of venomous snakes.” (Snake2). Knowing this information and more can possibly save yours or somebody else’s life when put into a situation when you have been bitten by a snake and can’t identify it, this paper will educate you on what to do in case of a snake bite and how the venom works on the human body. Snake bite- “the wound made by the fangs of a venomous snake or the teeth of a non-venomous one.” (Snakebite). Snakes only bite to capture prey or protect themselves when they feel threatened. When they feel threatened they give you warnings to tell you that they are about to strike. For example a rattlesnake will shake its rattle, a cobra will raise its hood, and the majority of the snake world will warn you with a loud audible hiss.

Ways of Envomation

“The process of introducing venom into a victim is called envenomating. Envenomating by snakes is most often through their bite, but some species, like the spitting cobra, use additional methods such as squirting venom onto the mucous membranes (eyes, nose, and mouth) of prey animals.” (Reptipage 1). There are different types of delivery methods of delivery of venom. First you come to the short fixed fangs of cobras and mambas. These fangs are fixed in the front of the snakes mouth and do not move when envenomating. In exception for the cobras there is the spitting cobra, which shoots out a jet of venom out of the hollow holes in the fangs. The snake usually aims for the eyes, nose, or mouth as mentioned above. Then we come to the vipers, which have swiveling fangs, which swing forward like a hinge while striking. Then there are the rear fanged snakes, which most of them are in the colibrid family. These