>>I was thinking the same things about the "hundreds of deaths"...

This I can't comment on, I don't know.

>>...and "angled fangs,"...

See my reply below.

>>...also that kings are somewhat less "hypodermic" than other snakes...

Fangs and skull are virtually identical to the coral snake discussed here. Thuroughly "hypodermic" in spite of much myth and misunderstanding.

www.madprogrammer.com/snakes/CoralSnake

>>...thus their "chewed" biting action.

A common adaptation among snake eaters that may have to try several times to get a fang in between scales.

>>But 2 ounces of venom in a bite is certainly a vivid image, about a half-full styrofoam coffee cup.

This is actually the part I wonder about. I keep hearing this number thrown around in non-scientific contexts. I've never seen hard data, but I've assisted in milking about a 12 foot king and while the amount of venom made my jaw drop, I'm sure it was still a fraction of an ounce. I wonder if, perhaps, this started with a factual source as "2 cc's".

[ Hide Replies ]

• GBR Press: Pet shop worker bitten - W von Papineäu, Wed Jun 14 13:30:38 2006
• GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed it - W von Papineäu, Wed Jun 14 19:46:19 2006
• RE: GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed - Venomjunkie, Wed Jun 14 22:31:01 2006
• RE: GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed - Fortiterinre, Wed Jun 14 23:47:56 2006
• RE: GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed - LarryF, Thu Jun 15 00:05:51 2006
• RE: GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed - Fortiterinre, Thu Jun 15 08:53:58 2006
• RE: GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed - LarryF, Thu Jun 15 13:54:14 2006
• RE: GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed - LarryF, Wed Jun 14 23:52:17 2006
• RE: GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed - Venomjunkie, Thu Jun 15 00:07:17 2006
• RE: GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed - Greg Longhurst, Thu Jun 15 07:23:20 2006
• RE: GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed - canadianherper04, Thu Jun 15 09:41:23 2006
• RE: GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed - Fortiterinre, Thu Jun 15 11:20:40 2006
• RE: GBR Press: Cobra bites hand that fed it - frank_b, Thu Jun 15 06:48:33 2006
• Why on Earth is........ - orinoco, Thu Jun 15 22:08:33 2006
• RE: Why on Earth is........ - frank_b, Fri Jun 16 04:19:44 2006
• GBR Press:Bitten man on road to recovery - W von Papineäu, Fri Jun 16 19:03:48 2006