Death Island: what is known about one of the most dangerous places on Earth
The island of Queimada Grande is recognized as the most dangerous on the planet. And all because it is home to 4000 species of deadly snakes. SSPDaily tells about it.
The island, which is also called Snake Island, has an area of only 0.43 km² and an altitude of 200 meters above sea level, ladbible.com reports. But it is home to such an insane number of reptiles that it is equivalent to three to five individuals per square meter.
This place is located about 35 kilometers off the coast of São Paulo state, Brazil.
The snakes were trapped on the Queimada Grande thousands of years ago after the end of the last ice age when rising sea levels separated the island from the Brazilian mainland.
It is home to one of the most venomous snakes on the planet, the island botrops or spearhead snake. According to various estimates, the number of venomous snakes on this island exceeds 70 thousand individuals.
The authorities do not allow anyone to visit it, except for a small number of scientists per year. Since 1992, more than 70 scientists have died from snakebites here. But a 9 News reporter was previously granted unprecedented access for 60 minutes and was joined by a medical team.
Speaking to news.com.au, Tara Brown recalled that local fishermen warned her not to go there.
She recalled: "When we talked to the local fishermen, they told us: "It's not a good idea, you shouldn't go there. There are legends about a whole family being killed there, and about pirates burying treasure on the island and snakes placed there to protect the treasure." The fishermen said they never went there, otherwise they would die."
Over time, the venom of the local snakes became even more deadly.
Brown explained: "They are different from their mainland counterparts in that they are five times more venomous and are among the ten most venomous snakes in the world. They hunt and eat birds. Not local birds, which have become too smart for them, but larger migratory birds, the oleos, which arrive during their migration. And the venom of snakes has become stronger because their prey is larger. This is an extremely interesting evolutionary experiment for scientists. It is a laboratory in the wild. You see evolution in action."