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Puffy the Puff Adder
A venomous Puff Adder, completely wild and photographed in the wilds of Namibia. As is common with Adders, the venom from this snake is cyto-toxic, which means the venom literally eats away at flesh and muscles.
This snake is extremely well camouflaged and one can easily unknowingly step on it if wandering about. Luckily, normally, it will make a loud hissing sound when detecting vibrations on the ground from approaching hikers. It is a docile snake, moving slow, but when it comes to striking, it is lightning vast.
Venomous and Dangerous to man.
The puff adder is a venomous viper species found in savannah and grasslands from Morocco and western Arabia throughout Africa except for the Sahara and rainforest regions. It is responsible for causing the most snakebite fatalities in Africa owing to various factors, such as its wide distribution, frequent occurrence in highly populated regions, and aggressive disposition.
comments (10)
Well done Claire. You have much more guts than I do. Posted 10 years ago
What a gorgeous snake! This is a Puff Adder (Bitis arietans) and is found throughout Sub-Saharan Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. On average, they grow to about 1 meter long (39.3 in), have a triangular head, and are quite stout. Their common name comes from the snake’s habit of inflating itself and hissing when threatened. The hiss is a warning, although it can be difficult to hear, and the snake may strike before the victim even realizes that danger is near. Puff adders are pretty sluggish, but strike quickly and should always be treated with respect. As ambush predators, they tend to hide and wait for prey to wander by. Rodents, small mammals, birds, and amphibians constitute the snake’s diet. Biting large mammals and humans is simply self-defense. But, they are venomous vipers and are responsible for the most snakebite fatalities in Africa. The high number of fatalities is due to several factors: the snake has a wide distribution and is common, it has long fangs and produces large amounts of potent venom, and they are well camouflaged as they quietly hide and bask along footpaths. Serious bites can cause bleeding, swelling, necrosis, severe pain, shock, unconsciousness, and death.
The beautiful, neutral pattern on a puff adder’s body lends them the perfect camouflage. But, unlike other snakes that merely rely on visual camouflage, puff adders also camouflage themselves chemically. This tactic is known as chemical crypsis. What this basically means is that they lack any detectable odor. They are essentially unsmellable—a pretty amazing superpower for an ambush predator to possess! So potential predators, like wild dogs and mongooses will walk right by these snakes, completely unaware of their presence. These animals rely on their sense of smell to find prey, yet they can’t detect a puff adder! Scientists aren’t yet sure how the snakes manage to remain stink-free. It’s suggested that they may have a low metabolism and body temperature, therefore giving off fewer volatile compounds. Or, maybe they have unique scales that prevent smelly bacteria from living on them.
Chemical crypsis isn’t the only cool trick that puff adders possess. They perform a behavior called caudal luring, which means that they extend and wiggle their tongues for long periods of time in order to lure in amphibians. This tongue wiggling ruse mimics the movements of invertebrates, such as worms and caterpillars. So, when a frog hops by, it will be fooled into thinking that the snake’s tongue is actually a tasty morsel. Sadly, this will be the last mistake the frog will make. Lingual luring is definitely awesome, but even more fascinating is the fact that puff adders only wiggle their tongue at amphibians. This means that they can visually discriminate between types of prey, thus demonstrating high cognitive abilities.
Whether you admire snakes or fear them, they are an essential part of the ecosystems in which they live, and they fulfill their roles efficiently and with a purpose. {Spotted in Namibia by JungleDragon user, Living Wild} #JungleDragon
Posted 6 years ago