The unique species of snake in China: 1 milligram of venom is enough to kill people, the king cobra is also terrified but its personality is very contrast

The nature of this snake is in stark contrast to the description of its toxicity.
In mainland China, there are about 50 species of poisonous snakes, the most popular of which are mountain wind snakes, bamboo-leaf snakes, five-step snakes, cobras, short-tailed snakes … So which species will occupy the throne of snake unique to China?

According to the Sohu , the only snake species recorded in China is the coral snake (scientific name: Bungarus multicinctus). This species can kill people with venom less than 1 milligram, even the king cobra when confronted with them also have to “turn off the power”. Small body Coral snakes live in southern China, they mainly live near the water’s surface and eat fish, frogs, snakes, and rats. The average body length of an adult coral snake is from 1m to 1.8m. In appearance, the coral snake has a simple black and white color, the back has hexagonal scales, the alternating black and white rings stretching throughout the body, the black part is longer and more than the white. Unlike conventional snakes with a triangular head, the coral snake’s head is oval in shape and small. Coral snakes possess an easily recognizable appearance. Photo: Sohu Although coral snakes are venomous snakes, they are very shy and often active at night. They will run away quickly when disturbed, or hide their heads under their bodies if they feel bothered. Unless intimidated, coral snakes will not actively attack people. In addition, the two fangs of coral snakes are relatively small, the other teeth are not pointed, so they cannot bite through the human skin too deeply. Therefore, when a person is bitten, the pain will be relatively mild, even some people cannot feel it. But if the anti-poison serum is not injected in time, the person who is bitten will definitely not be cured. The venom is deadly To measure the toxicity of snake venom, LD50 (a lethal dose of 50%, a dose required to kill half of the individuals used as an experiment over a given experimental period) is used as a parameter indicator. Projection for toxicity measurement. According to the experimental data of coral snake venom, LD50 of coral snake venom to mice is 0.09-0.108 mg / kg (subcutaneous injection), 0.113 mg / kg (intravenous injection) and 0.08 mg / kg (intraperitoneal injection). LD50 of the mountain wind snake has a famous large venom at about 0.35mg / kg, but only equivalent to a quarter of the toxicity of coral snakes. Therefore, after comparing the LD50 values ​​of the known poisonous snakes, it was concluded that the coral snakes are the most poisonous snakes in China as well as in Asia, in addition they are ranked 8th on the rankings. rank of poisonous snakes in the world. This is the most poisonous snake species in China as well as in Asia, in addition, they are ranked 8th on the ranking of poisonous snakes in the world. Photo: Sohu In the early stage of being bitten by a coral snake, the small molecular weight α neurotoxin first binds to acetylcholine receptors at the neuromuscular junctions, preventing the transmission of neurotransmitters, causing Injured person shows drowsiness, body stiffness, drooling, muscle spasm and other reactions, the nerve mass at this time is reversible. Several hours later, a large amount of β-neurotoxin acts directly on the motor nerve’s pre-synaptic membrane, inhibiting the release of acetylcholine, causing skeletal muscle to lose its function of contracting and transform into constant paralysis, eventually leading to to respiratory failure. This process happened very quickly and violently. What to do if bitten by a coral snake? First, what needs to be explained here is that it is completely wrong to suck venom by mouth like in a drama, then the poison will go straight through the mouth and take the life of the smoker. Therefore, the best way is to take a picture of that snake or bring it to the hospital for identification and injection of anti-venom serum as soon as possible. Although the coral snakebite is not as deep as other species, when the toxicity develops, the patient will suffer extremely severe pain with death always imminent. Photo: Medihub If you have been bitten by a coral snake in the wild and cannot get help, you can burn the wound with fire. Theoretically, proteins and enzyme peptides (the main ingredient in coral snake venom) are inactivated in the presence of acids, alkalis, electrolytes and high temperatures. The main reason is that the coral snakes have short fangs and small amount of venom that can only bite into the shallow layers of the skin. Therefore, in an emergency, burn the wound skin into blisters. However, this method only works miraculously for the wound from coral snakes, not suitable for other poisonous snakes. In fact, poisonous snakes are not as scary as we often think. Except for the king cobra, most poisonous snakes are afraid of humans. So when you see snakes, take the initiative to stay away from them at least a stride, do not blindly raise snakes if you do not have the knowledge to avoid “drawing on the body”.