Are all elapids potentially fatal, or are there some species that would be unlikely to produce a fatal bite?
Reptile & Amphibian Forums
Welcome to kingsnake.com's message board system. Here you may share and discuss information with others about your favorite reptile and amphibian related topics such as care and feeding, caging requirements, permits and licenses, and more. Launched in 1997, the kingsnake.com message board system is one of the oldest and largest systems on the internet.
Least venomous elapid?
Trust
Jul 20, 2003 02:27 PM
Replies (3)
WW
Jul 21, 2003 04:19 AM
>>Are all elapids potentially fatal, or are there some species that would be unlikely to produce a fatal bite?
Most of the smaller Australian elapids are often regarded as basically harmless. However, every once in a while, someone ends up in critical care after being bitten by one of these "harmless" species, so this is not something one should rely on. Demansia spp. (also Australia) are normally regarded as fairly inconsequential (ie., painful but not life-threatening), and Pseudechis porphyriacus is rarely life-threatening, although there are one or two records of kids dying n the 19th/early 20th century.
The other thing to remember is that very little is known of the venoms of these small species, so if you were to get bitten and develop serious symptoms, nobody would know what, if any, antivenom would cover it, and what symptoms you might develop.
The smart move is to treat ALL elapids as being potentially lethal, even if for some of the smaller species, the risk is in reality quite minimal.
Cheers,
Wolfgang
-----
WW
LAF
Jul 22, 2003 07:28 AM
The African garter snakes, Elapsoidea, seem pretty innocuous too, I certainly can't recall hearing of any BAD bites, local pain and swelling at worst, though there is an anecdotal report of a woman dying within minutes from a bite - one has to presume anaphylaxis was the culprit there.
Cheers, Lee.
WW
Jul 23, 2003 03:51 AM
>>The African garter snakes, Elapsoidea, seem pretty innocuous too, I certainly can't recall hearing of any BAD bites, local pain and swelling at worst, though there is an anecdotal report of a woman dying within minutes from a bite - one has to presume anaphylaxis was the culprit there.
Don't presume anything with small elapids - too many people have died as a result (Check the thread started 30 June on Calliophis melanurus on the Venomous Forum). Few bites from Elapsoidea have been documented, so I would call that genus poorly known, and treat it with great respect, as I would any 2 ft elapid.
Admittedly, death within minutes is hard to reconcile with an Elapsoidea bite, but given the stakes, I'd be reluctant to gamble on it.
Cheers,
Wolfgang
-----
WW
