Showing posts with label snakes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label snakes. Show all posts
Friday, August 20, 2010
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnakes
Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnakes are native to the Southeastern Coastal Plains. They can be found in Southern North Carolina, Eastern South Carolina, Southern Georgia, Florida, Southern Alabama, Southern Mississippi, and Eastern Louisiana.
These rattlesnakes inhabit low elevation sandy areas, long-leaf pine forests, pine flatwoods, sand hill communities, turkey oak forests, live oak hammocks, pine ridges or coastal areas. Favorite haunts include saw palmetto scrub, Gopher Tortoise burrows, and stump holes.
Eastern Diamondbacks are often found on Georgia's barrier islands, the Florida Keys, and Islands in the Gulf of Mexico. They are well known to be excellent swimmers and have often been spotted crossing stretches of water between barrier islands and the mainland off the Georgia coast, in the Gulf of Mexico and in the Florida Keys, sometimes miles from land.
These snakes can often be found on agricultural land. Farms provide a steady food supply in the form of rodents. Tin, plywood, and other debris provide shelter to the snakes. The snakes may spend the first three years of their life underground in stump holes and root systems.
Individual disposition varies, with some allowing close approach while remaining silent, and others starting to rattle at a distance of 20 to 30 feet (6-9 m). When threatened they raise the anterior half of the body off the ground in an S-shaped coil and strike to a distance of at least a third of their body length. Many will stand their ground and may strike repeatedly.
One popular myth is that these snakes must rattle before striking. They are, of course, quite capable of striking while remaining completely silent.
The Eastern Diamondback is a large, impressive, and potentially dangerous snake. It can strike up to 2/3 its body length; a 6-foot specimen may strike 4 feet. The venom of the diamondback is potent. When severely bitten, the mortality rate for humans is nearly 40 percent. Symptoms include, but are not limited to pain, severe swelling, bruising, blistering, headache, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, diarrhea, dizziness, collapse or convulsions, Yellow vision; paraesthesia/numbness of digits, metallic taste in mouth, fasciculations, and/or death.
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Southern Pacific Rattlesnake
This is the most common species in San Diego and may be found near housing developments, parks, and even the beach. Its range is from coastal Southern California to northwestern Baja California, Mexico, and they are commonly found on prairies or sage scrub/grassland areas, especially near rocky outcroppings
Like most rattlesnakes, the Southern Pacific produces a powerful hemotoxin that attacks the blood and tissue of its prey. Recently, in some areas of southern California the Southern Pacific Rattlesnake has developed neurotoxins in it's venom, as well. A bite from this snake can cause localized tissue damage in humans, and if left untreated may result in death from hemorrhaging, blood clotting or a drop in blood pressure. In addition if neurotoxins are present in the snakes venom, there may be other neurological issues as well, including paralysis, respiratory failure and cardiac arrhythmia.
It is not clear how some Southern Pacific rattlesnakes have developed neurotoxic venom, although it may be due to cross breeding with the Mojave rattlesnake. In any case this makes for a potentially more dangerous envenomation and snake. The Southern Pacific Rattlesnake (Crotalus Helleri) is responsible for most of the snake bites in the coastal area of California from Los Angeles to San Diego
This particular snake is highly venomous and even though the Southern Pacific rattler is nonaggressive, it accounts for more venomous bites in the United States than any other snake because we are building new homes and communities on top of their habitat.
Mojave rattlesnake
This rattlesnake species averages between 3.25' (100 cm) and 4.5' (137 cm) in length. Their color varies with the terrain, ranging from shades of brown to pale green. Their frequent green hue, has led to their being called "Mojave greens" in some areas of the U.S. This snake is not considered endangered and is found in a fairly wide distribution throughout the southwestern U.S. in good numbers.
The Mojave rattlesnake is often found in close proximity to large and growing population centers in southern California and therefore may be encountered more frequently by humans then other species. They have a reputation for being fairly aggressive, although this is based largely on anecdotal information, rather than scientific evidence. Like most rattlesnakes they will defend themselves rigorously, against perceived threats such as handling, or when disturbed.
The Mojave rattlesnake is widely considered one of the most dangerous and venomous snakes of the Western Hemisphere. The bite from a Mojave rattlesnake is a serious medical emergency and is potentially life threatening. A snake to leave alone and avoid, the Mojave earns first place on my list of the U.S. most dangerous snakes.
Inland Taipan (aka Fierce Snake) of Australia
The Inland Taipan consumes mostly rodents, birds and rats. They kill with quick, multiple strikes, injecting venom into their victim. The venom clots the victim's blood, blocking arteries or veins and using up clotting factors. It is also highly neurotoxic, leading to symptoms of paralysis, respiratory failure and cardiac arrythmia. There are no known survivors of a Taipan bite before an antivenin was developed and, even then, victims often require extended periods of intensive care.
Fortunately this snake is very shy and inhabits arid and unpopulated areas of the "outback". The Inland Taipan is native to the arid regions of central Australia, extending from the southeast part of the Northern Territory, and into west Queensland. The Inland Taipan can also be found north of Lake Eyre and to the west of the split of the Murray River, Darling River and Murrumbidgee River.
The Inland Taipan is dark tan, ranging from a rich, dark hue to a brownish olive-green, depending on the season. Its back, sides and tail may be different shades of brown and grey, with many scales having a wide blackish edge. It adapts to the environment by changing the color of the skin during seasonal changes. This snake tends to be lighter in summer and darker in winter. The seasonal color change serves in regulating the snake's temperature, allowing the snake to absorb more light (thence converted to heat) in the colder months. Inland Taipans average between 6½ to 12 feet long (2 to 3.6 meters)
Sunday, April 25, 2010
King cobra the world dangerous snakes
1. cobra: A venomous snake, family elapidae. You can learn a whole lot more about this cobra here, 'cuz that's the cobras I've got on this site!
. Shelby Cobra: A really kewl car. Wish I had one. Click on the pretty car to learn more about them, then e-mail me to make arrangements to drop yours off at my house for awhile. ;) OhmagawdIwantone
3. C.O.B.R.A: The insurance thingie. Readin' about this cobra is as exciting as cleaning your soap dishes, unless of course you're an H.R. or insurance kinda person.
4. COBRA Manager: Software to make some sense of that insurance thingie above. Look out Quake, this one's action packed!
5. COBRA/SAMBA: COsmic Background Radiation Anisotropy Satellite/SAtellite to Measure Background Anisotropies. I still have no idea what this means, and I spent an hour on their site reading about it. Just a wee bit technical. Have a ball with this one!
6. COBRA: Interuniversity Research Institute on Communication Technology (Wouldn't that be IRICT?) in The Netherlands. Trying to prounounce the Board's names is worth a chuckle or two, unless your Dutch. Interesting projects underway there if you're a net-techie.
7. cobra golf: Awesome golf clubs. Absolutly incredible web site... these guys know how graphics and design are supposed to work! Check it out... after you're done here, of course.
8. LORAL Cobras: A softball team in Fairfax, Virginia. I just had to throw this one in (pun intended).
9. Cobra Electronics: Gizmos, gadgets, and other neato stuff. I happen to have one of their CB's. I would have one of their radar detectors, but they're illegal in Virginia. :(
10. The cobra position is one of the 12 basic Asanas (postures) as taught by Swami Vishnu-devananda, founder/Guru of the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centers. Don't try this at home kids
king cobra
king cobra
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