Poisonous snakes are among the most feared creatures in the animal world. The venom of poisonous snakes is so deadly that it can kill one in no more than thirty minutes, not to mention the risk of getting blind if any of the toxins are sprayed into the eyes. Even with the risk of getting bitten in close encounters, poisonous snakes prove in fact harmless as they rely on their venom to survive: no snake will bite unless in defense or to hunt its meal . The rest of the negative aura surrounding snakes comes from an incorrect perception triggered by ancient myths.
The venom structure difficulty is amazing: there is mainly a combination of proteins and toxins that when spread in the prey's body paralyze and eventually kill it. The toxin weakens the muscles, the lungs and the heart, and starting from this way of action scientists have identified poisonous snakes into kind that destroy blood vessels and cause unstoppable hemorrhage, venomous species that paralyze the heart and, last but not least, others that only cause excruciating muscle pain. The poisonous snakes with the most frightening of reputations are corals closely followed by cobras.
The complex structure of the snake venom still fascinates scientists, and lots of tests are still conducted on it. The only remedy for poisonous snakes bites is the immediate administration of antivenins. There are however some factors that increase or decrease the victim's chances of survival: thus, knowing the type of snake that caused the bite and its exact location prove crucial. If too much time lapses between the moment of the bite and the administration of the antivenin, serious health damage or even death could occur. Furthermore, there have been cases of patients who developed instant allergies to poisonous snake bites or to antidotes and died.
Rattlesnakes are the most common poisonous snakes in America, and they are the ones to cause most of the bites, yet lethal outcomes of such incidents have become a rarity in our times since medical help is not a problem anymore. The water moccasin, the copperhead and the cottonmouth belong to the same poisonous family as the rattlesnake; they are highly poisonous snakes which you should avoid by all means possible. Snake phobia could thus be developed because of a dangerous encounter with some poisonous snakes or this excessive fear can be the result of sociological ancestral beliefs that are manifest even with people who have never felt threatened by a snake.
The snake is also a mythical representation not just an animal people feel afraid of. The graphical stylizations of snakes in our arts and cultures go back to the ancient mythical times. Thus, regardless of the types of snake varieties, we are talking about important elements of ecosystems, with a well-established role in the evolution of certain species, and secondly they remain figurative spokesmen of deep meanings. Their feeding on mice and rats keeps pest under control and prevents rodents from over-breeding. Yet, in the very old traditions, types of snake worshiping did exist, with the serpent symbolizing deities, or the eternal cycle of life and death or wisdom.
All types of snake-related traditions have been discovered everywhere in the world: for the ancient Greeks the snake represented the symbol of fertility; Mesopotamians and Semites attributed immortal features to this creature because it moulted and it rejuvenated its look on a regular basis; Indians, Siamese and Burmese considered the snake the embodiment of a demon that is not entirely bad.
