DEADLIEST SNAKES IN NIGERIA

Nigeria is a blessed country with a lot of diverse landscapes, favourable climate conditions, coastal plains,vast savannah, biodiversity of flora etc. These natural features have permitted lots of wild beauties to dwell in it. Amongst them are the various species of snakes found here.

And all thanks to nature researchers whom have come up with the fact that, Nigeria has four types of snakes that can be classified as "The Most Deadliest." They include:

West African carpet viper
Gaboon viper
Puff adder
Black-necked spitting cobra

WEST AFRICAN CARPET VIPER

The West African carpet viper with the botanical name (Echis ocellatus) is 1 to 2 feet long with speckled light to dark brown dorsal scales and a light coloured belly. It ranges through out Nigeria in its natural habitat of forest edges and Savannah, up to 3,000 feet above sea level.
The carpet viper acount for the 90% of snakes bite in  Nigeria and 60% of  human sankebite fatalities- mostly famers and young children, according to the Medical Journal of Therapeutics. Its potent  hemotoxic venom makes it the most dengerous snake in  Africa and, in terms of morbidity, the most dangerous snake in the world. Victims experience blistering, hemorrhaging and tissue damage that may result in necrosis.

GABOON VIPER

The gaboon viper with the botanical name (Bitis gabonica) hunts rodents ,birds and frogs during the evening hours. It range through out the tropical rainforests and other moist regions of East and West central Africa.
It also ranges from 4 to 6 feet in length and it brown colour and leaf-shaped head provide excellent
camouflage under the leaves on the forest floor.
Infamous for having the longest fangs among snakes, up to 2 inches, the gaboon viper is known for the several snakesbites in Nigeria each year. Its venom is deadly to humans if not treated promptly.

PUFF ADDER

The puff adder (Bitis arietans) is distributed through North Africa. Non aggressive and sluggish, It is responsible for 60%  of reported snakes  bites, making it one of the most deadliest, Its potent venom is cytotoxic and injected by front-hinged fangs that folds out when the mouth opens and retracted when it closes.
Human victim of such bites dies if not treated within 26 hours or deep necrosis may set in, requiring amputation of affected body part....wow!!!!!!!!

3 feet long with dull yellow, orange, brown and beige markings providing excellent camouflage. Habitat- open grassland, savanna,open woodlands and rocky outcrops,they are prey upon rodents and birds.

BLACK-NECKED SPITTING COBRA
The black-necked spitting cobra (Naja nigricollis) spits when provoked. Highly venomous, responsible for many human bites every year, Its ranges from Nigeria and Namibia.
It has olive-brown colour with a black back and yellow to red underbelly, dark-coloured throat band.

It prey on toads,lizards, grasshoppers and rodents. 4 to 6 feet long.

Now you know few snakes you must run away from especially, if you don't wanna get a part of you amputated. But of them all, you can still pick the one you admire most. As for me, it is the COBRA, beautiful and intelligent.