Do Not Step on This Snake! Necrotoxic Venom! ft. Malayan Pit Viper

This CREATURE FEATURE series is publishing every Sunday (usually... sorry for the delay on this one!)

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In this episode:
We've seen a lot of Pit Vipers in Asia. Today we feature a different type of Pit Viper, one that lives on the ground in the leaf litter. It is the Malayan Pit Viper ( Calloselasma rhodostoma ). Unlike those that live up in the trees, this one blends into the leaves - it is highly camouflaged.

This snake has adapted to live in paddy fields and among the plantations in Asia, like Palm Oil or Rubber Plantations. This means that this snake, along with the fact that it doesn't move (sitting in ambush silently), it is responsible for hundreds of bites per year on people in Asia. For this reason these snakes are considered landmines.

The snake is quite feared in parts of Asia especially because of its venom. It is a necrotoxic venom, meaning it destroys the cells it gets into contact with, simply rotting away flesh with necrosis. The result if a human is bitten by accident, is often an amputation of the bitten limb, unless receiving anti-venom. Locally it is known as the axe snake, meaning if you get bitten, you will have to chop your limb off!

In this episode Sarah on camera had a close call ! :)

DISCLAIMER
Jack Randall has extensive experience handling and studying wild animals. Where filming with dangerous animals Made in the Wild works with scientists and wildlife institutions. Do not attempt to handle wild animals without appropriate training and permits.

About Jack Randall:
Jack is a zoologist on an adventure! He has a TV show with National Geographic Wild called "Out There" and this is his YouTube channel where he tells animal stories. Jack was educated at Oxford University following an apprenticeship with the iconic Steve Irwin (which started when Jack was 14!). Jack’s mission is to show off the world’s most amazing animals. And to do that he must explore the world’s most wild places…

What Are Creature Features?
All creatures have evolved different tricks to survive in the wild places they call their homes! Each animal has an awesome story about how they look, what they eat and even how they move! Creature Features spotlight the stories behind these crazy cool adaptations.

The Science:
With over 1 Million species on the IUCN Red List of Endangered Species, animal populations are in decline the world over. This is due to many reasons but what we know for sure is to keep the planet's amazing diversity of wildlife we need to learn as much as possible about where and how these creatures live their lives. Collating all the data we are gathering will help build a picture of which habitats are key to sustaining the largest diversity of life on planet earth.

Thanks to our amazing team without whom the series would not have been possible!

Suzie Brearley, Production & Second (backup) Cam
Sarah Ash, Camera
Tom Eagar & Me, Edit
Mike Wyatt, Graphics
Michael Brearley, Series Intro