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World’s Deadliest Island — Ilha da Queimada Grande (Snake Island)
Snake Island may not have human habitats, but what earned the island its name is its resident snake population that is of incredibly high density. It is estimated that for every one meter squared, there lives at least one snake.
The mysterious island is also known as Ilha da Queimada Grande, and it is in fact so dangerous to set foot there that Brazil has made it illegal for anyone to visit. The danger on the island comes in the form of the golden lancehead snakes — a species of pit viper and one of the deadliest serpents in the world.
Home to an estimated 4,000 venomous lancehead vipers, this is considered one of the worlds’ deadliest islands.
The lancehead genus of snakes is responsible for 90 percent of Brazilian snakebite-related fatalities. The golden lanceheads that occupy Snake Island grow to well over half a meter long, and they possess a powerful fast-acting venom that melts the flesh around their bites.
Since the island vipers had no prey but birds, they evolved to have extra-potent venom so that they could almost immediately kill any bird. Local birds are too savvy to be caught…
