The story of creation states that it was the snake that tempted Eve thus contributing to the fall of man. The snake in the old tales was said to be walking with two hind legs. Due to his mischiefs, the snake was cursed to crawl the ground with its long tongue still sticking out signifying his lying words. Snakes have no legs so they basically just crawl on their belly and their lineage varies with numerous species. Snakes have different ways of hunting and protecting themselves. Snakes are generally perceived to be scary and dangerous. Despite the fact that snakes are only moving on instinct they are always depicted as bad guys or in a negative way. Considering the fact that there are a lot of families and breeds and snakes it is very different to tell which is the most dangerous since they have various characteristics. Then again we’ll just focus on their main family breed since the branch incorporates the majority of their similar traits.
1. The Rattlesnake
The rattlesnake is a member of the viper sub-family namely under the Crotaline branch. Rattlesnakes are generally found in North and South America. Rattlesnakes use venom as their means of attacking and use their jaws for eating small types of prey. Rattlesnakes generally move slow or sluggish and they tend to live on rocky surfaces or in hot and desert areas.
Rattlesnakes have an average length and their scales appear to be spiky in appearance. Their defining trait is the rattle at the tip of their tail. The rattle effect signifies that the snake is either preparing to attack or simply setting up a defensive stance to warn enemies that they are ready to strike.
2. The Viper
The viper branch is also known as the Viperidae is a breed of snakes that uses venom as its means of attacking and hunting. The characteristics of a viper make them look to have a lot of scales piled up together. They also have a very short tail tip despite its long body. The most definitive characteristic of a viper is that they have very long fangs. This is evident when a viper releases its fangs when it’s preparing to inject venom on its prey.
Vipers are extremely fast and can attack at any second. They may be sitting pretty one minute but can attack in a nanosecond. There are four subfamilies of the Viperidae namely the Azemiopinae, Causinae, Crotalinae, and Viperinae.
3. The Cobra
Cobras are snakes that have a lot of subfamilies. The cobra is also known for its weird head formation which looks like a shield or hood thus also giving it the nickname the hood or hooded snake. Cobras are abundant in Africa and in South and Southeast Asia. Cobras vary in size but they are generally small to average in terms of size. Generally, most cobras are venomous and use poison as their means of offense. One subfamily of cobras is called the spitting cobras where they tend to spit poison at a distance.
The King Cobra from India is known to be the largest venomous snake in the world. Speaking of India, cobras are generally the best snakes used for snake charming as they seem to be attracted to the tunes through the resonance on their hoods.
4. The Anaconda
The anaconda is the world’s largest snake. They are abundant in the Amazon, South America, and in the swamps of Africa. Anaconda literally means elephant killer as its ancient ancestor Titanoboa was said to be a snake so big that it could devour an elephant. The anaconda has several subfamilies like the Eunectes notaues, Eunectes deschauenseei, Eunectes beniensis, and the most common one the Eunectes murinus. The Eunectes murinus is the most famous branch as they are the common looking anacondas sporting that classic green look. Anacondas are generally slow due to their enormous body.
When they’re in the water they tend to move faster because their weight wouldn’t have any effect. Anacondas use constriction as their means of attacking as they don’t have any venom. They do have great power capable of breaking the bones of a tough animal like a water buffalo.
5. The Sea Snake
The sea snake as its name suggests lives underwater and in the ocean or sea. Sea snakes generally set shelter in tropical areas such as the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Ocean. They are also abundant areas near the equator as well as around New Zealand and Australia. Sea snakes are generally slim in terms of their body appearance.
They also stretch to an average length along with their traditional scale color patterns mixed with either black, white, and blue stripes. Sea snakes can move really fast underwater and they are extremely poisonous. Their venom is considered to be the most poisonous in the entire snake family.
Snakes may have their bad reputation but it’s undeniable that their existence is a good factor in the animal kingdom. There are some snakes that have been domesticated but they can still hold a threat if they aren’t treated well.
Snakes generally have two means of offense which would either boil down to using poison or constriction. Poison and venom are just one of the few arsenals for several breeds of snakes. There are only a few known antidotes for some snake venoms while others don’t have. The toxicity of the snakes’ poisons are known for being lethal and can kill a lot of people at a very fast rate. Constriction is another means of attacking the snakes. They use their strength to bind and constrict their target rendering them immobile. They can crush their target’s bones or kill them on the spot before they ingest them as food. There are no snakes that incorporate these two qualities at the same time. When one snake uses poison it doesn’t constrict and vice versa. Whatever their means of attack is, as long as the person has the knowledge to avoid these snakes then they’ll be safe.