The Deadliest Venomous Snake in the World

[Rolandslf]

It has long been debated on which is the deadliest snake in the world.
I am starting this thread because it could prove to be very interesting.

Sooo - Please list the ten snakes which you think are the deadliest in the world with No. 1 being your deadliest.

[John_White]

The most dangerous snake is the one you don't see.

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[SUAD]

That's easy: it's the one that just bit you. The rest is semantics, and irrelevant.

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[Hotherps]

It all depends upon how you define deadly? Are you asking for the snake with the most potent venom, the most likely to kill you in the shortest amount of time or the genera that kills the most people?

As far as I am concerned, the deadliest is the one that kills the most people and therefore the answer is Echis Sp. Saw-Scale Vipers.

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[LooseAFur]

Saw scaled are cool vipers, and unique looking

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[LdyDrgn]

Out of all the snakes? Or just the ones on land?

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[Amazon]

I always hear that the most venomous snake is the Taipan... but I'm not entirely sure what that is based on

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[LdyDrgn]

Originally Posted by Amazon

I always hear that the most venomous snake is the Taipan... but I'm not entirely sure what that is based on

On land, yes.... based on LD50 I believe..

There are so many ways to dictate which is the "deadliest", and the results would be different if looked at from every angle.

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[Sakara]

I think Animal Planet did a show on the deadliest venoms based on locality to humans, potency, amount of venom released per bite/sting, etc... It was a pretty cool show for an Animal Planet thing...

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[Vinny]

Originally Posted by SC_INK

Saw scaled are cool vipers, and unique looking

I agree

Very interesting posts everyone, but i'm going to list some I think drop for drop are the most potent!

1~Inland Tipan
2~Beaked sea snake
3~Coastal Tipan
4~Black Mamba
5~Green Mamba
6~Tiger snake
7~Red Belly Black Snake
8~Boomslang
9&10 the snake that bites you...


..I've done much LD-50 menu reaserch, I know i'm not 100% correct. But I like my choices

..I was going to start this thread, because of our earlier conversation Thanks buddy!!!

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[Alex]

Originally Posted by Sakara

I think Animal Planet did a show on the deadliest venoms based on locality to humans, potency, amount of venom released per bite/sting, etc... It was a pretty cool show for an Animal Planet thing...

I saw that one.. They took a bunch of different factors, compared them to the other snakes, and somehow wound up with a "top 10" list.

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[Hotherps]

We keep a large number of Echis (140 +) currently of 4 different species.

On a side note, the venom I have personally extracted from our Echis ocellatus over the last couple of years has been used to produce antivenom that has saved the lives of more than 12,500 West Africans. That makes all the hard work worthwhile and feels good.

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[_Venom_]

I think deadliest should be based on the venom's drop by drop potency.

Killing the most people doesn't mean the creature itself is deadly. It just means it encounters people more.

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[patch]

the best quote I've heard to date is, "The most deadly snake is the one thats got you by the ankle". Wish I could remember who said it.

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[_Venom_]

I hate that quote.

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[Hotherps]

I try and avoid the words deadly and deadliest wherever possible as the terms can be so ambiguous.

In fact when I posted my comment stating that Echis where the most deadly, I realised later that I actually meant “Dangerous” (that is what sometimes happens when you fire off a quick response).
Whenever I provide tours around our Herpetarium I state the following:
People often ask what is the most dangerous / toxic snake in the world. The fact is there are two parts to that question. There is a distinct difference between what is the most dangerous and what is the most toxic. The most toxic land snake is Oxyuranus microlepidotus the Inland Taipan... this carries enough venom to kill a hundred people.. BUT it has never caused any human fatalities as it generally lives in very remote areas of Australia. There have been cases where Herpetologists have been bitten, but they have all survived due to good antivenom, hospitals , emergency services, road systems and education in what to do and how to treat bites.

By contrast.....

The most dangerous snake, the one that kills the most people is the Saw-Scale Viper, Echis Sp. the reason for this is it is widespread, occurring across sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and on through India and Sri-Lanka. In other words across some of the world’s poorest /developing countries where there is often severe antivenom shortages, poor hospital resources, long distances to hospital on poorly maintained roads, lack of education, money and a reluctance to use “western” medicines. These snakes are found around human habitat in numerous quantities and so there is a high level of interaction between these snakes and humans.

Originally Posted by _Venom_

I think deadliest should be based on the venom's drop by drop potency.
Killing the most people doesn't mean the creature itself is deadly. It just means it encounters people more.

Dead is dead... you can only die once. Echis kills thousands of people, it may take several days but the result is just as “deadly” as someone who dies within hours after being bitten by an Elapid with a fast acting venom.

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[Vinny]

Originally Posted by Hotherps

I try and avoid the words deadly and deadliest wherever possible as the terms can be so ambiguous.
In fact when I posted my comment stating that Echis where the most deadly, I realised later that I actually meant “Dangerous” (that is what sometimes happens when you fire off a quick response).
Whenever I provide tours around our Herpetarium I state the following:
People often ask what is the most dangerous / toxic snake in the world. The fact is there are two parts to that question. There is a distinct difference between what is the most dangerous and what is the most toxic. The most toxic land snake is Oxyuranus microlepidotus the Inland Taipan... this carries enough venom to kill a hundred people.. BUT it has never caused any human fatalities as it generally lives in very remote areas of Australia. There have been cases where Herpetologists have been bitten, but they have all survived due to good antivenom, hospitals , emergency services, road systems and education in what to do and how to treat bites.
By contrast.....
The most dangerous snake, the one that kills the most people is the Saw-Scale Viper, Echis Sp. the reason for this is it is widespread, occurring across sub-Saharan Africa, Middle East and on through India and Sri-Lanka. In other words across some of the world’s poorest /developing countries where there is often severe antivenom shortages, poor hospital resources, long distances to hospital on poorly maintained roads, lack of education, money and a reluctance to use “western” medicines. These snakes are found around human habitat in numerous quantities and so there is a high level of interaction between these snakes and humans.

Great post!! And I agree with all of it Echis envenomations have been treated with S.A.I.M.R. ( South African Institute of Medical Research Polyvalent antivenin) and envenomations treated with SAIMR have had not one single fatality. My Atheris Chlorechis (West African Bush Viper) envenomation was treated with SAIMR and worked wonders. This was the first case where that antivenin was used in a Atheris envenomation. My envenomation has been published in the medical journal, to help save lives in the event of a Atheris ssp envenomation. If you look A. ChlorECHIS was named because their venom is very similar to Echis the Chlor means color. A lot of people think that Atheris ssp's are not very toxic, in fact I almost did die. My blood pressure was dropping rapidly, I was showing signs that the venom was in my circulatory system in about 4 hours after the envenomation. And had no health problems whatsoever. Just some interesting info

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[Rolandslf]

This thread is so interesting because of the many different viewpoints expressed. I do agree that the only way to list the most venomous can only be done on a Drop for Drop Toxicity basis. I do not base my list on any formal study of LD50 etc., but rather on my perception and experience over the years.

I agree with Vinnys' list except for a few changes. My Top Ten are:

1. Inland Taipan
2. Beaked Sea Snake
3. Australian Brown Snake
4. Red Belly Black Snake
5. Coastal Taipan
6. Banded Krait
7. Jamesons Black Tailed Mamba
8. Black Mamba
9. Boomslang
10. Green Mamba

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[Vinny]

Originally Posted by Rolandslf

This thread is so interesting because of the many different viewpoints expressed. I do agree that the only way to list the most venomous can only be done on a Drop for Drop Toxicity basis. I do not base my list on any formal study of LD50 etc., but rather on my perception and experience over the years.
I agree with Vinnys' list except for a few changes. My Top Ten are:
1. Inland Taipan
2. Beaked Sea Snake
3. Australian Brown Snake
4. Red Belly Black Snake
5. Coastal Taipan
6. Banded Krait
7. Jamesons Black Tailed Mamba
8. Black Mamba
9. Boomslang
10. Green Mamba

I also find this thread very interesting!! I like your list as well Also I agree venoms potency can only be rated on a drop for drop basis. Yes Echis ssp's kill the most people, but thats because of poor medical treatment etc, but if that person would get good antivenin in a good amount of time, they will have a fast and full recovery.

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[ChadRamsey]

politicians are the MOST dangerous SNAKES

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