Snake Island in Brazil has 1 snake per square meter, becoming a forbidden place for human beings

Like every part of the world has its own "snake islands" where snakes often impress with their staggering numbers and ferocious habits.

However, nowhere is the "Snake Island" more famous than the "Snake Island in Brazil". The Brazilian Snake Island, also known as Grand Caymada, is a small island off the Atlantic coast of Brazil, often known as the deadliest island in the world.

It has never lived up to the title of "Snake Island". The island has a total of 430,000 square meters. Locals believe that there are at least 1-5 snakes per square meter.

However, Marcelo Duarte, a biologist with more than 20 experiences on the island, believes that there are not as many snakes as imagined here, and it is almost the minimum value considered by the locals, which is 1 snake per square meter. Snake look.

Even so, the number of snakes on this island is staggering, and many of the venomous snakes are very venomous, including the golden spearhead pit viper, which is often on the list of deadliest snakes, and the Brazilian Snake Island is its only one Homes, the current number is about 2,000 to 4,000.

This snake has a terrestrial relative, the spearhead snake. It is said that 90% of the poisonous snake bites in Brazil are initiated by this snake, which shows how aggressive these snakes are.

What's more terrifying is that the golden spearhead pit viper is five times more poisonous than its terrestrial relatives. Their venom can dissolve human skin. If they are accidentally bitten by it, they will die within an hour.

It is precisely because of the large number of snakes and the highly poisonous that the island is prohibited from landing. It will only be released if it is for scientific research purposes and with at least one doctor.

Well, it's probably the only island that is off limits to humans because of too many snakes.

Of course, there are some snakes that look scary, but are actually non-venomous, including the white-fronted snail-eating snake, which is known to eat snails from its name.

The Origin of Snake Island in Brazil: Why Are There So Many Snakes, So Poisonous?

In fact, there is an interesting legend about the origin of poisonous snakes on the island: a group of pirates hid gold on the island, and then put the most poisonous snakes here to protect their wealth.

But in fact, these snakes have evolved here longer than human civilization.

About 11,000 years ago, the sea level rose enough to separate the Brazilian Snake Island from the Brazilian mainland, and the snakes living here were cut off from the interior, and they went their own evolutionary routes.

In this isolated island, it is difficult for many large animals (including snake predators) to survive, because resources are becoming more and more limited, and most importantly, it is impossible to maintain genetic diversity.

Snakes of course face the same problem, but they are much better than larger animals. Their demand for food is not very large, and they often have a full meal for a year without going hungry, and such islands are enough to ensure their population.

Eventually, the snakes here become free of predators, and they can reproduce more quickly.

Faced with the problem of limited resources, snakes have also found a way out, which is to focus on birds. In search of food, many snakes climb the trees, preying on migratory birds that rest on the island during seasonal long-haul flights.

We know that the predatory strategy of poisonous snakes is to inject venom into the prey, then track the prey, and wait for the venom to work, but this trick is basically ineffective for birds, because the birds fly out of the island accidentally.

There are only two ways to deal with a bird, either fast enough to kill in one hit, or venomous enough to kill its prey before it flies off the island.

Therefore, it makes sense that the offspring of those venomous snakes will become more and more venomous, eventually exceeding five times that of their terrestrial relatives, otherwise they will be eliminated early.

In fact, the formation of Snake Island is similar in all places.

The snakes on Snake Island are exceptionally ferocious because their prey pushes them in a faster and more venomous direction.

Since isolated islands lack predators, and islands are often places for birds to rest, their populations can be very staggering. After all, many snakes eat migratory birds once a year.

Forbidden Land: Protecting people before, now protecting snakes!

There is a lighthouse on Snake Island in Brazil, and there is a terrifying legend about this lighthouse.

In the 1920s, the lighthouse is said to have been manned - a couple with three children, one night several golden spearhead vipers entered their room and attacked the man, while his wife He and his child were bitten to death by a golden spearhead pit viper hanging from a tree during their escape.

Since then, in order to protect the locals, the island has been banned from landing, and the lighthouse has become fully automatic, but it will be maintained every once in a while.

There is also a story of a hungry fisherman who went to the island to pick bananas, was bitten by a snake, and died on the deck covered in blood.

These two stories are not necessarily true, but they can reflect the local people's fear of this island from one side. When it became a forbidden area, few people landed for a long time.

Now, however, that rule is being broken, as the island's only species, the golden spearhead viper, has become a black market darling.

Some scientists believe that the venom of the golden spearhead pit viper has many medicinal properties, and it is its rarity and golden appearance that collectors covet.

With such demand, a single golden spearhead viper could fetch between $10,000 and $30,000 on the black market, prompting many poachers to risk their lives on the island to find it.

The island's golden spearhead pit viper is believed to have declined by nearly 50 percent in the past 15 years, and it is now critically endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.

The reduction of their populations may make the island less dangerous to humans, but the island is still a forbidden place for humans, but now more consideration is given to protecting these snakes.

at last

As far as the Brazilian Snake Island is concerned, the local birds are actually very vigilant about this place. The snakes on the island are not easy to catch, and they basically live on tired migratory birds.

It's hard to imagine what direction these snakes will develop without human participation. It may eventually collapse into a huge population, or more ferocious snakes may appear. The ecosystem of isolated islands can always give people surprises and surprises. .