this is Brazil's ill had aquamata Grand is the only home of one of the world's deadliest and most endangered snakes from Iguazu Falls to lenswa moranhance's National Park there are some breathtakingly beautiful places in Brazil ilhadak Guam located about 90 miles off the Sao Paulo Coast seems like another one of those beautiful places at first glance almost every Brazilian knows about the island but most would never dream of going merits infested with between 2000 and 4 000 golden landsat vipers one of the deadliest snakes in the entire world these vipers Venom can kill a person
in under an hour and numerous local Legends tell of the horrible Fates that awaited those who wandered onto the shores of snake island rumor Hazard a hapless fisherman landed onto the island in search of bananas only to be discovered days later in his boat dead in a pool of blood with snake bites on his body from 1909 to the 1920s a few people did live on the island in order to run its Lighthouse but according to another local Tale the last Lighthouse Keeper along with his entire family died when a Cadre of snakes slithered into
his home through the windows although some claimed the snakes were put on the island by Pirates hoping to protect their gold and reality the Island's dense population of snakes evolved over thousands of years without human intervention around 11 000 years ago sea levels Rose enough to isolate illha da quamada Grand from Mainland Brazil causing the species of snakes that lived on the island thought to most likely be haraka snakes to evolve on a different path than their Mainland Brethren the snakes that ended up stranded on ilhadakuamata Grand had no ground level Predators allowing them to
reproduce rapidly their only challenge they also had no ground level prey to find food the snake slithered upward preying on migratory birds that visit the island seasonally during long flights often snakes stalk their prey bite and wait for the Venom to do its work before tracking the prey down again but the golden Lance had vipers can't track the birds they buy right so instead they evolved incredibly potent and efficient Venom three to five times stronger than any Mainland snakes capable of killing most prey and melting human flesh almost instantly because of the danger the Brazilian
government strictly controls visits to illah Guam even without a government ban though ilhadak Guam probably wouldn't be a top tourist destination the snakes on the island exist in such a high concentration that some estimates claim that there is one snake for every square meter in some spots a bite from a golden Lance head carries a seven percent chance of death and even with treatment victims still have have a 3 chance of dying the snake's venom can cause kidney failure necrosis of muscular tissue brain hemorrhaging and intestinal bleeding 90 of snake bites in Brazil come from
Lance had snakes a close cousin of the golden Lance had both are members of the bathroom genus biologists hope that by better understanding the golden lens head and its Evolution they can better understand the bathroom genus as a whole and and more effectively treat the numerous snake-related accidents that occur throughout Brazil some scientists also think that snake venom could be a useful tool in Pharmaceuticals in an interview with Vice Marcelo Duarte a scientist with the Brazilian butantan Institute which studies venomous reptiles for pharmaceutical purposes describe the medical potential of the golden lens head we are
just scratching this universe of possibilities of Venoms he said explaining that the golden Lance heads venom has already shown promise in helping with heart disease circulation and blood clots snake venom from other species has also shown potential as an anti-cancer drug because of black market demand by scientists and animal collectors Wildlife Smugglers known as biopirates have been known to visit ilhadakwamatogram too they trap the snakes and sell them through illegal channels as single golden Lance heads can go for anywhere from ten thousand dollars to thirty thousand dollars habitat degradation from removal of vegetation by the
Brazilian Navy and disease have also damn damage the Island's population which has dwindled by nearly 50 percent in the last 15 years by some estimates the snake is currently listed as critically endangered on the international Union for conservation of Nature's Red List while that might make snake island slightly less terrifying for humans it's not a great deal for the snakes how dangerous is the golden Lance head snake the golden Lance head snake is one of the most venomous snakes in South America the mortality rate for people that get anti-venom is believed to be up to
3 percent that number greatly increases if you do not get any treatment up to a seven percent mortality rate even if the individual does not die they will suffer severe damage to their body the Venom of a golden lens head is hematoxic that means it attacks red blood cells and can cause all sorts of different physical problems if a golden lens head bites you you will suffer from Pain internal bleeding necrosis of muscle tissue possible hemorrhages in the brain and other symptoms however due to the Brazilian government keeping people from visiting the Island no debts
from bites exist in modern records this snake is not among the most venomous snakes in the world by any measure but it's deadly enough to kill humans with ease if a person were to sneak on the island and get bitten the chances are that they would be facing severe Health difficulties after all they're about 90 miles from the nearest vial of Anti-Venom can you visit Snake Island the Brazilian government has closed off access to the island to protect humans and snakes the Brazilian Navy restricts access to the island but they go to the lighthouse to
make repairs every year very few researchers have permission to go to the island when they do go they must get specific approval and then they must also have certified doctors accompany them since the snakes on the island are one of a kind government restrictions may not be enough to stop some criminals from coming to the area reports of biopirates who visit the island and acquire snakes for researchers and collectors might be overblown or entirely false given the danger posed by going to Snake Island in short ilhada kwamata Grand is a place that does not quite
live up to the Legends nevertheless it's very dangerous and should not be a destination for anyone Not only would someone face severe legal complications for going to the island without permission but they just might die it's better to admire the golden lands had from a very long distance away like through a computer screen [Music]
