TOP 20 Most Venomous Snakes in the World
Snakes are predators by nature. Each species has assets that allow them to kill their prey. Some species use their bodies to immobilize their victims and kill them by suffocating them, while others use their teeth to bite their prey and inject venom to kill them.
Many snakes have deadly venoms, and it is those with this characteristic that will be classified in this article. Other characteristics such as length, size, etc. will not be considered in this classification, only those that are venomous will be considered, and venomous means dangerous. This ranking goes from the least venomous to the most venomous, from the twentieth most venomous to the most venomous in the world. To classify them, we will sort them by the speed of reaction of the venoms.
Here is our TOP 20 of the most venomous snakes in the world :
20th place: The Royal Cobra
This specimen is the longest of the snake species that are venomous. Indeed, it measures between 3 and 4 m in length but the longest royal cobra found at the London Zoo reaches 5.71 m. The weight of this species is around 15 kg.
Faced with the threat, this snake puts itself in a position of intimidation by unfolding its headdress and standing about 1.5 m above the ground, but it always tries to escape and only begins the confrontation in extreme danger. Its venom is the least dangerous of the snakes in this class, but in large quantities it can be very dangerous. Royal Cobra attacks are less frequent than those of the Indian Cobra.
19th place: The Common Spearhead
This species of snake is mainly found in South America as in Brazil, Costa Rica, Venezuela, Colombia. Being terrestrial snakes, they live in tropical forests but to get its prey, it climbs trees and swims in swamps. Indeed, this snake is both a great climber and also an excellent swimmer. Its name is due to its pointed and triangular head resembling a spearhead. As for its length, it can reach 2 m.
Since this classification is dedicated to the venomous snake, it is important to talk about its venom which is hemorrhagic and destroys the vascular endothelium. This causes blood clotting by a mechanism triggered by the venom that is in contact with the blood. A spontaneous remission of hemostasis has been observed after 14 to 20 hours following the bite.
18th place: The Boomslang
It is also known as the tree snake. It is found all over Africa: in Southern Africa, West Africa, East Africa and Central Africa. An adult boomslang measures between 1 m and 1.6 m but sometimes there are some that even exceed 1.8 m. It is one of the venomous snakes but often harmless to humans because it has a small venom gland so it does not secrete much venom.
Nevertheless, the victims of this snake are often dead because its venom is venomous enough to cause internal and external bleeding. Its venom is slow acting so you only see the symptoms hours after the bite. Other symptoms may appear such as drowsiness, mental disorders, headaches and nausea. Since the venom doesn’t work fast, it gives victims time to take the antidote.
But the bite of this snake should not be underestimated because even after taking the antidote, sometimes the fangs have touched blood vessels and the victim can bleed out in a short period of time without realizing it beforehand.
17th place: The Eastern Diamond Rattlesnake
It is found from the Mississippi River to North Carolina in the United States of America. They often live in dunes, swamps, palm or pine forests. On average, its weight is 2.3 kg for a length of 1.7 m but can reach 15 kg with a length of 2.4 m. This rattlesnake feeds on birds, sometimes lizards but it prefers rodents. On the side of danger and venom, the venom of this species causes hypotension, necrosis, sometimes haemorrhages but the most dangerous effect of its venom is heart failure and that is why it is in this classification.
16th place: The striped Bongare
A species of reptile that is present in Chin and Southeast Asia, it lives mostly in swampy areas but can be found in places other than swamps. This snake measures around 1.5 m. It is one of the most venomous snakes in the world, so its place in this classification is not for nothing.
15th place: The Bongare fascié
Also called bongare annelé, it is mainly found in Asia, more specifically in Malaysia, southern China, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia and many other Asian countries. They hunt only at night, in fact, it is a nocturnal snake. Having long teeth, they never let go of their prey until the prey is dead because of the injected venom.
Being extremely venomous, the venom of this Bongare is neurotoxic and contains a toxin that blocks the release of acetylcholine which is carried out by the axons of the neurons. This blockage causes nerve flow to stop and causes paralysis of the heart and respiratory system. Death quickly follows.
14th place: The Green Mamba
Another mamba that is very venomous. It is mainly found in the coasts of East Africa. They can reach 2 m in length. They feed mainly on birds, bird eggs, ground rodents but also bats. Being very venomous, a bite from this mamba can kill an adult male. Its venom contains mainly neurotoxins, more precisely pre-synaptic and post-synaptic toxins, and cardiac toxins.
Even if this snake is not very aggressive, the mortality rate associated with it is very high. A bite causes swelling at the bite site, dizziness, difficulty breathing, irregular heartbeat, convulsions that quickly follow with respiratory paralysis. If the venom is injected during a bite, death occurs rapidly.
13th place: The Central American Spearhead
A species both aquatic and terrestrial, rather aerial, it is as agile in water as it is in trees. It has an incredible camouflage capacity thanks to its color, a very particular and natural shade. Given its habitat which is rather close to humans and its venom which is very toxic, it is one of the most dangerous snakes in Latin America.
12th place: The Indian Cobra
It is also called Cobra with glasses because of the marks in the back of its cap once deployed. But there are some who do not have this particular mark. As its name suggests, it is found mainly in India and throughout South Asia. It comes out only at dusk and especially at night, another nocturnal snake.
Being fast and having a very effective venom that is both neurotoxic and toxic to the heart. The mortality rate caused by this cobra is 20% to 30%, since the amount of venom in a bite is very small and even the bite does not contain venom sometimes.
11th place: The Western Diamond Rattlesnake
It is mainly found in North America, in Texas, hence its other name, the Texas Rattlesnake. In North America, this species is the most dangerous, given its large size as it reaches an average length of 1.50 m for a weight of about 2.5 kg, and its actions are incredibly fast. This snake is nocturnal during the warm season and diurnal in spring and autumn.
10th place: The Striking Viper
This species of snake is nocturnal, that is to say that it comes out only at night. In Africa, the majority of people who suffer injuries from being bitten by a snake is due to this species of viper. Its bite can kill a man in 25 hours. It is one of the snakes that attacks at an incredible speed, indeed, its attack is very fast. Before attacking, it warns by hissing and head movements.
9th place: The Death Viper
Living in New Guinea and Australia, this species is very ferocious and very dangerous as its name indicates (death viper). This snake often attacks its fellow creatures. Its hunting method is quite particular because it camouflages itself in the sand and attacks by surprise by injecting a venom that can kill in less than 6 hours.
But it only attacks when it identifies a threat. They feed mainly on lizards, rodents and birds. Its length does not exceed one meter for a circumference of about 40 cm with a weight that can exceed 6 kg.
8th place: The Black Mamba
This species is found in Africa. It gets its name from the blackish color in its mouth and not from the color of its skin which varies between a metallic brown and an olive gray, there are black mambas but they are very rare. Its length is between 2.50 m and 4 m for 1.5 kg. It is a terrestrial snake, that is to say that it lives on the ground but sometimes, to get its prey, it goes up in the trees and it is also very agile.
This snake is very fast because it moves at more than 10 km/hr and even reaches more than 20 km/hr when its habitat is threatened. A dose of 10 milligrams of its venom can be enough to kill an adult while a bite from this snake can inject 100 to 120 milligrams of venom. Its venom contains neurotoxins so paralyzes the body of its prey. If it bites a man, he will not be able to speak in less than 20 minutes and falls into a coma within an hour, death occurs about 6 hours after the bite.
If you believe that the place where you are heading is inhabited by the Black Mamba, remember to bring the serum to counteract its venom because you will not have time to get an anti-venom in case of bites from the fangs of a Black Mamba. Certainly this snake is more dangerous than some that precedes it in this classification but this is due to its incredible speed but its rank here is justified by the effectiveness of the venom of the others compared to its own.
7th place: The Indian Bongare
This species of bongare is found in Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Nepal. An adult Indian bongare measures between 90 cm and 1.5 meters. Concerning its bite, the victim does not feel any pain, its bite is painless; but its venom can kill a man within two to three hours after the bite.
Indeed, its venom is very toxic. In southern India, this species is among the most venomous. They live mostly in fields, forests and near human habitats. It is a snake that is only active at night (nocturnal) but it is very aggressive and bites if disturbed during the day.
6th place: The Caspian Cobra
It is a cobra which is quite small in length, on average 1 m to 1.5 m. It lives mostly in temperate places which leads them to migrate during winter. It is the only one of its kind to live in bushes, grasses, rocky areas, meadows.
They also love the high altitudes in the fields of crops in the mountains. It is mainly found in Iran, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan but also in India. Its place is thanks to its venom which is among the most dangerous in the world, a neurotoxic venom with very rapid effects and after a bite, death always occurs in less than an hour. The mortality rate caused by this cobra is 73% if the venom has been injected during the bite.
5th place: The Tiger Snake
Its name is due to the yellow stripes that adorn its body. This species of snake is found in Australia. It is very dangerous because its venom, which has a neurotoxin, is powerful in addition to being fast, but it is not very aggressive with humans.
However, when they feel threatened, they inflate their necks by standing up and then hiss and go on the attack. Its venom can kill in less than 30 minutes. Its length can vary between 1 m and 1.80 m. We can cross them in woods, swamps, rocks. It goes into a phase of hibernation in winter, a hibernation that it carries out in hollow trees or rocks.
In general, their food concentrates on birds and mammals that they catch in burrows. They mainly hunt harmful rodents such as rats. They are among the endemic snakes.
4th place: The Cobra of the Philippines
Like all cobras, it has the ability to extend its cervical ribs, which are quite long. It has an average length of 1 m to 1.60 m. Its peculiarity is that it is a spitting snake because they can spit their venom at more than 3 meters. It is therefore preferable to avoid getting too close to this reptile because its venom is lethal and can kill in less than 20 minutes.
If it happens to cross them in the Philippines, it is necessary to avoid approaching them, to excite them because the threat makes them more aggressive and they go on the attack. Its bite is often fatal.
3rd place: The Brown Snake
This reptile which one crosses especially in Oceania is very aggressive and belongs to the most poisonous snakes of the world from where its place in this classification. Its venom contains neurotoxins and hematological toxins. In this country, it has already counted many victims.
Indeed, it is often confronted with humans because it has a preference for inhabited places and tends to sneak into houses. These snakes can reach 2 m in length. They generally feed on rodents, especially rats and mice, which is why they love inhabited places. This species is part of the endemic one.
2nd place: The Desert Taipan
This reptile is present in Australia, fortunately, it lives in the most remote place where no man ventures. Its venom is very virulent and it turns out to be the most toxic venom in the world for a terrestrial snake. One drop is enough to kill 250,000 mice or the equivalent of 100 adult males. It is a discreet, passive and fearful species. When it feels threatened, it runs away at high speed. This snake is also very fast in its attacks. It prefers warm-blooded prey, in fact, its venom is deadly to humans.
When it bites, it releases a toxin that can kill 100 men in less than an hour. Its venom is 100 times more toxic than that of the diamondback rattlesnake and 25 times more toxic than that of the cobra. It is a killer by nature, as soon as it is born it is already a great deadly predator. In terms of wingspan, it is about 2 m long, far from competing with the longest snake in the world but it is very dangerous. Its color is often brown, with a dark brown tint, sometimes a tugging beige. This hue depends on the seasons.
1st place: The Belcher’s Snake
It is a species of sea snake and it is the only one with this ability in this ranking. It is mainly found in the Western Pacific Ocean, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines. This snake is quite passive and only attacks when threatened. Nevertheless, it possesses the most toxic venom (neurotoxic) because it is enough to kill 1000 individuals with only a few milligrams. If the anti-venom serum is not administered to the victim, death can occur 30 minutes after the bite.
This makes it the most venomous snake in the world. Its venom is a true poison. It is one of the most dangerous snakes in the world. This classification was made from studies that researchers have done.
However, they are all very venomous and very dangerous snakes, so it was necessary to study the smallest details to classify them. A little additional information: all these snakes in this classification can live about 10 to 15 years, but some of them can even live up to 20 years. Some of the venoms of these snakes already have anti-venom serums to counteract their effects while others are still incurable. These snakes in this classification are extremely dangerous to humans and therefore are also among the most dangerous animals in the world.
In short, each snake has its own ability, capacity, survival mode, but also its modus operandi to attack, immobilize or even kill their prey is different depending on the species. Here we are talking about species that are venomous, that is to say they use their venom by biting or even spitting it to attack their prey. While they are very dangerous, they are also victims of other predators that they are unable to control. All these species are all small in size so they are surely one of those larger than they are.
However, it is advisable to never disturb these snakes that we have classified because it is often the threat that pushes them to attack. Most of the attacks are of defensive origin. They attack to defend themselves but also to eat. But what about other species that use other methods? What characteristics do they use to attack their prey? Is the venomous snake’s mode of operation the most effective?