Slithering Heights Trivia Quiz

Answer: Eastern coral snake

The solitary and reclusive eastern coral snake is not often seen. Bites from this snake are rare because of this behavior. The coral snake is the only venomous snake in North America that is not a pit viper; in fact, they are more closely related to cobras and sea snakes.

They have a potent neurotoxin that takes a while to start showing symptoms. Medical care is absolutely necessary, and a dose of antivenin will almost always prevent death. This snake has a number of look-alikes, so as a general rule, do not pick up any of them.

Answer: They have very small throats.

The bushmaster is a deadly viper that makes its home in the jungles of Central and South America. It is very secretive and shy. The bushmaster is listed as vulnerable basically because of deforestation and habitat destruction. Although the bushmaster can grow as large as 12 ft. they only eat very small prey because they have very small throats and one of the smallest swallowing capacities of any member of the snake family.

They have heavy scales and are usually only seen at night. The bushmaster dispenses large amounts of venom when it bites, and most people bitten by this much-feared serpent will die.

Answer: Australia

The highly venomous death adder can be found in Australia and some parts of New Guinea. An untreated bite from this serpent is often fatal. They inject a lot of their neurotoxic venom with each bite. Death usually occurs from heart failure or respiratory failure. One of the death adder's favorite foods is other snakes.

It is an ambush hunter and considered by many to be one of the most dangerous serpents on the planet.

Answer: To appear larger and more fearsome.

Both male and female cobras have hoods. They are used to make them appear larger and to intimidate any predator. Cobras are found in hot semi-tropical areas of Africa and Southern Asia. There are over 100 different types of cobras but all sport the hood, although in varying sizes.

The Asian king cobra is the largest venomous snake in the world as well as being an avid swimmer. Cobra venom spreads quickly through the victim's bloodstream. It has potent postsynaptic neurotoxins that cause rapid respiratory failure by paralyzing the diaphragm. Immediate antivenin is needed, when unavailable, victims can be kept alive by using a respirator until the paralysis wears off.

Answer: False

The copperhead is often responsible for more venomous snake bites than any other venomous snake in North America each year. A copperhead bite is very painful and will make you very sick, but are rarely deadly. This is because they have a significantly weaker venom than many other venomous snakes in North America and also, because they use much less venom when they do bite.

These snakes make their homes in the warm southeastern regions of the U.S.

Answer: Puff adder

The puff adder lives in many areas of Africa including the woodlands and semi-desert. They mainly feed on small mammals and rodents. They are often mentioned as one of Africa's most dangerous snakes. They are listed in a myriad of research papers as causing the most deaths by snake bite in the whole African continent.

The name is derived from the way they puff up when threatened. They are known to lay in paths and roads without moving. They wait until someone or something walks by and they attack by ambush.

Answer: Ireland

The European adder is thought to be the only venomous snake found in Britain, except for Ireland. They are also the only species of snake that regularly lives inside the Arctic Circle. The regularly hunt amphibians, lizards, and small mammals. They will bite their prey and let it walk/run away. It follows the scent of the prey until the prey dies, at which time they devour them. Their venom will not usually kill a healthy adult human, but children, the elderly and the immunocompromised are all in severe danger if they are bitten.

Answer: Daboia

The Daboia, aka Russell's viper, makes its home in the countries of southeast Asia, mainly India and Sri Lanka. It is often found in agricultural regions and is one of the most aggressive of all snakes, which both lead to one of the highest number of snake bite deaths.

A bite from the Daboia is extremely painful and causes almost immediate bleeding. This includes bleeding from the gums, nose, and ears in less than an hour. This is followed by paralysis of the neck muscles causing a phenomenon known as broken neck syndrome. Death is usually caused by internal bleeding and renal failure. Even if you manage to survive a bite from this snake, full recovery is very rare.

The other three options are all types of monkeys.

Answer: Narrow stripes

Not all snakes live on land. Some of the most venomous types of snakes are known as sea snakes. There are many varieties, but all have smallish heads, flattened paddle-like tails, and nose flaps that close while they are under the water. All sea snakes breathe air, but can remain underwater for up to an hour at a time.

They come in many colors and patterns. Found usually in the Pacific or Indian Oceans, some of these snakes have venom powerful enough to kill a healthy human with one drop. Sea snake bites are rare, partially because they are shy creatures, and they also have very short fangs.

Answer: False

The Mang Mountain pit viper was not discovered until 1989 when it was found in the southern regions of China. It has green and brown coloring which provides excellent camouflage, and it is one of the few snakes on the planet known to spit its venom. It lives in one of the coldest habitats of any of the world's snakes, surviving freezing weather by crawling into caves and under rock ledges.

This is a very shy snake and bites are very uncommon.