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Many people dream of one day living on their own private tropical island and it’s easy to see why. They imagine long stretches of sandy beach, gorgeous sunsets, and beautiful blue ocean vistas for as far as the eye can see all to themselves. As dreamy and ideal as it all seems, there is one deserted island off the coast of South America that no one would ever want to live on.
The nightmare of an island is called Ilha da Queimada Grande, but it’s more popularly referred to as “Snake Island” because it’s filled with hundreds of thousands of snakes. In fact, the island happens to be the only home in the world to one of the most venomous snakes on Earth, the golden lancehead pit viper (Bothrops insularis). The particular species of golden lancehead pit viper that’s found on the island has venom that is so toxic to humans that even if a person is administered anti-venom immediately after being bitten, they’d probably still die anyways. If they survive the odds and lived, they’d probably wish that they hadn’t because the venom causes muscle necrosis, liver failure, brain hemorrhaging, blistering flesh, and other horribly painful symptoms.
Other than the deadly pit vipers, there are many other types of snakes on the island, the most common being dispas albifrons which are nonvenomous and found throughout coastal Brazil. They eat mainly snails while the primary prey for the rest of the snakes on the island is birds. Competition is extremely tight however, as it’s estimated that there are between 1 and 5 snakes per square meter on the island, which is about 10.8 square feet, yikes!
Over the years many tales have emerged about how snake island came to be, and one popular theory is that pirates brought the snakes over to guard the treasures they buried there. The scientific explanation is that the snakes were trapped on the island after sea levels began to rise and cut them off from the mainland. Either way, the snakes have managed to thrive on their island home and since it is protected by Brazil and closed to the public, they will continue to. People are strictly prohibited from venturing onto it and only the Brazilian Navy, carefully chosen scientists, and select researchers are allowed for conservation purposes.
In the past, people who did try and land on the island have met early deaths. There was a fisherman who went ashore to get some bananas, he apparently did not know about the snakes and got bit, only to make it back to his boat where he soon died. A more well-known story happened in the early 1900s when there was a lighthouse on the island. The lighthouse keeper lived there with his family until snakes invaded their home and killed them all. When people came to rescue them, they too got bit by the snakes and died.
It’s stories like these and the clear and present danger that the golden lancehead pit vipers present that have made snake island one of the most dangerous and deadly places on Earth. Even though t may look like a tropical paradise from afar, it should be avoided like the plague!
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