Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was wondering what are the major differences between the two.

Well, aside from the fact that they are different species completely, the most glaring difference would probably be with the scales/skin. The West Africans have larger scales and black interstitial skin which looks like they have a net draped over them. The East Africans are uniformly green. That's the most obvious and easily noticeable difference. I'm not sure if that's the answer you were looking for.

and BOTH will bite the snot out of you, if your not careful!

Yes but the West African Green is by far the most aggressive. Also the venom of the D. viridis is MUCH MORE toxic than the East African and interestingly enough is so different that the S. African polyvalent antivenom is NOT effective on the bite. I'm well aware of this as the W. A. Green Mamba is one of the only two venomous bites I've received to date. Next to the Black Mamba they are the MOST DANGEROUS of the Mamba's.
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Tom Crutchfield
www.tomcrutchfield.com

The WA Greens are a handfull! The Ea Greens are far easier,in my experience ,to work with.I may be flamed but a WA green or a jamasoni have been a S.O.B to work.

I agree with you....thanks
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Tom Crutchfield
www.tomcrutchfield.com

in my opinion black are the easiest to handle.

the worst part is their size which makes them unwieldy.

if they dont want to cooperate, there wont be a whole lot you can do to convince them otherwise.

All Dendroaspis are extremely dangerous at best...