Number 5: Mark Laita Mark Laita was successful in merging his fascination
for snakes with his talents in photography.
The result was a highly-praised book, entitled “Serpentine”, which underlines the striking
beauty of the otherwise deadly creatures.
Against a black velvet backdrop, the award-winning photographer captured the coiling snakes’
texture, color and form.
The stunning photographs came at a price as Laita ended up suffering for his art in a
brutal encounter with a black mamba.
Throughout his collaboration with various collectors, Laita knew that proper safety
measures needed to be taken.
While photographing the spitting cobra, for example, he wore protective equipment.
The king cobra was photographed while encased in an acrylic glass box.
Then, one collector approached him holding a black mamba, which is among the most venomous
snakes in the animal kingdom.
Laita wore shorts at the time so that the snake wouldn’t be startled by the movements
of pants material.
It was also a precaution against the worst-case-scenario of the snake crawling up the pants leg, free
to bite into vulnerable areas.
At one point, the black mamba started circling Laita’s foot.
The photographer then switched to a different camera to better capture what was going on.
As the collector reached in with a hook to draw the snake away, the mamba bumped into
a red cable that was hanging down.
It got startled and, within moments, sunk its fangs into Laita’s calf.
At first, the man felt nothing but soon enough blood started gushing out of his leg.
Both fangs had struck an artery.
The collector repeatedly asked Laita about his heart and breathing, fearing that envenomation
had occurred.
However, roughly 20 minutes later, the photographer still felt fine apart from the blood that
had soaked his sock and filled his sneaker.
Laita would report intense pain throughout the following night, but ultimately recovered.
It could’ve been much worse when considering that the snake’s venom glands hadn’t been
removed.
Fortunately, it was older and most likely bit without injecting venom, which is known
as a dry bite.
Even if it had released venom, the severe bleeding would’ve probably washed it out
of the wound before it could take hold.
As he was going through the pictures he’d taken, Laita discovered one of the snake still
latched onto his leg.
He didn’t remember taking the shocking photo and it potentially occurred as an involuntary
reaction to the sudden attack.
The picture subsequently went viral and provided a harrowing perspective for anyone who knows
what the black mamba is truly capable of.
What Is It?
Dendroaspis polylepsis, commonly known as the black mamba, is among the most dangerous
snakes in the animal kingdom.
It belongs to the Elapidae family, the members of which have fixed hollow fangs used for
injecting venom and subduing prey.
The snake’s common name is derived from the Zulu word “imamba” which translates
as “scales”.
Of all the venomous snake species, the black mamba is exceeded in length only by the king
cobra.
Exceptionally large adults have been reported at close to 15 feet.
The black mamba has medium-sized eyes and a coffin-shaped head with a rather pronounced
brow ridge.
It’s a front-fanged snake and the inside of its mouth is dark in color, ranging from
bluish-grey to nearly black.
It’s where the snake gets its name from.
When it comes to skin color, juveniles are typically lighter than adults, which vary
considerably, from olive to a metal-like grey.
Black mambas usually hunt from permanent lairs while mostly preying on birds and small mammals,
such as rodents or bats.
The aggressive snake has earned a fearsome reputation in its native sub-Saharan Africa.
It possesses highly toxic venom that wreaks havoc on the human body, which is why encounters
are best avoided in the wild.
Number 4: Arslan Valeev 31-year-old Russian YouTuber Arslan Valeev
purposefully allowed his pet black mamba to bite him and then live streamed his final
moments.
Valeev, a former zoo employee, ran a channel featuring exotic animals alongside his wife
Ekaterina Pyatyzhkina.
The couple had hundreds of thousands of followers.
The two snake enthusiasts then started having marital problems.
Valeev was physically abusive towards Pyatyzhkina upon suspicion that she’d been unfaithful.
The 24-year-old woman moved out of their marital home.
She filed for divorce and started seeing another man, who was reportedly involved in the rare
animal trade.
Then, five days short of their wedding anniversary, Valeev let a black mamba bite his hand and
started talking to his subscribers on YouTube.
During the live stream he expressed regrets at the way he’d treated his wife and the
pain he felt living without her.
He told his viewers “If I die, then I die”.
While the bite itself wasn’t shown, Valeev lifted a bloodied finger towards the camera.
He visibly started to wither away as he was talking about his relationship.
Valeev was aware that he was slowly dying from the black mamba venom.
He gave those watching Pyatyzhkina’s number and pleaded with them to call her so that
he could see her one last time.
However, by the time the woman got the call, it was already too late.
Valeev stumbled off camera and into the street.
Pyatyzhkina rushed to the home, where the camera was still on but Valeev was gone.
He’d been taken to the hospital, where he later died.
Pyatyzhkina said that she’d loved him very much and that, despite their problems, they
were still husband and wife.
Valeev’s father said that he felt hatred towards those who’d encouraged his son to
keep venomous snakes at his home and use them for entertainment.
Where Is It Located?
The black mamba is widely distributed throughout sub-Saharan Africa, in countries such as Cameroon,
Burkina Faso, Uganda, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Rwanda, South Africa, Namibia and others.
Aside from certain areas in Zambia and Kenya, the black mamba is rarely found at altitudes
above 3,300 feet.
It prefers a moderately dry environment such as semi-arid savannas, rocky outcrops or light
woodland.
It’s both terrestrial and arboreal, meaning that it can also live in trees.
On the ground it moves with its head and neck raised, finding shelter in tree cracks, abandoned
burrows, rock crevices or termite mounds.
During the mating season males compete in wrestling matches that involve intertwining
their bodies and using their necks in submission attempts.
The black mamba is an oviparous snake and females lay up to 17 eggs.
The young are known to grow quickly, capable of reaching nearly 7 feet after their first
year.
Juveniles are highly apprehensive and can be just as deadly as the adults.
The black mamba’s life span, in the wild, may exceed 11 years.
They don’t have many natural predators, with the exception of several bird species,
such as eagles and vultures, which are experts in hunting snakes.
Mongoose and honey badgers will also sporadically prey on the snake, since they have some resistance
to black mamba venom.
That’s mainly because their muscular receptors don’t bind the alpha-neurotoxins in the
venom.
Number 3: Ryan Soobrayan Ryan Soobrayan died from a black mamba bite
while he was trying to extract venom for medical research.
The incident happened at a reptile facility in Johannesburg, South Africa.
African Reptiles and Venom provides snake identification, treatment of bites as well
as programs aimed at raising awareness.
Soobrayan was in charge of venom extraction at the facility and would even provide training
for others.
The herpetologist was described as a highly competent snake handler who loved his job.
As he was working with the black mamba, he got a pinprick on his thumb from one of its
fangs.
Moments later, he asked his colleagues for help and collapsed.
Despite their efforts, Soobrayan died on the spot.
It would have normally taken longer for the venom to put his life in jeopardy.
However, what happened in Soobrayan’s particularly tragic case was that he went into anaphylactic
shock.
He’d suffered a severe allergic reaction to the snake bite, which ultimately claimed
his life.
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How Will It Kill You?
The black mamba represents a deadly mixture of venom toxicity and aggressive temperament
which arguably makes it the most feared snake on the African continent.
When it attacks, it delivers several quick strikes and injects considerable venom with
each one.
It’s a highly athletic snake, capable of slithering speeds of up to 10 mph.
Because of its size and ability to raise its head a considerable distance from the ground,
the black mamba can launch well-over a third of its body upwards.
This means that attacks on humans can occur above the waist as well.
The black mamba can have up to 20 drops of venom in its fangs and only two are enough
to kill an adult human being.
The venom differs markedly from that of other mamba species and predominantly contains neurotoxins,
which target the central nervous system.
The venom is fast-acting, incredibly potent and features toxic agents from two main families.
The first are dendrotoxins, which have an excitatory effect causing symptoms such as
sweating.
The second are three-finger toxins, named after their common structure of three connected
beta strand loops.
These include alpha-neurotoxins, cardiotoxins, fasciculins and mambalgins, each with intense
effects on the human body.
Out of all of them, the most toxic components are the alpha-neurotoxins.
They block neuromuscular transmission thus causing paralysis.
Cardiotoxins impact the heart muscle while fasciculins cause muscle twitches.
Interestingly enough, mambalgins, the snake’s proprietary toxins, have a pain-inhibiting
effect.
This is why there’s research interest in its analgesic potential and why the World
Health Organization has classified the black mamba as a snake of medical importance.
Its bites won’t generally cause necrosis or swelling and the only initial sign might
be a tingling sensation in the extremities.
It’s often that symptoms start to develop within 10 minutes of envenomation.
Here’s what’s likely to happen if a black mamba bites you and injects a large amount
of venom.
You’d begin to feel a metal-like taste in your mouth and gradually lose control of your
jaw and tongue.
You’d likely feel tingling in your lips, arms or toes.
Aside from slurred speech, you’ll experience nausea, vomiting, blurred vision and uncontrollable
salivation.
Symptoms progress to respiratory failure, cardiovascular collapse and death.
Some fatalities have occurred within as little as 20 minutes after the victim was bitten.
Untreated bites that cause severe envenomation are almost always deadly.
Number 2: Nathan Layton Nathan Layton was a British trainee safari
guide who had a deadly encounter with a black mamba at the college where he and his girlfriend
were studying.
The snake had been found near a classroom at the Southern African Wildlife College in
Hoedspruit.
The snake escaped as Layton and an instructor were transferring it into a glass jar.
It was during attempts to recapture the snake that the 28-year-old student got bitten.
However, he hadn’t felt the bite but only the snake brushing his hand so he carried
on with his classes.
He then asked an instructor if black mamba bites were supposed to bleed and showed her
his index finger.
There reportedly wasn’t any visible mark and, after asking him if he experienced any
tingling, the instructor deemed that Layton was fit to continue the lecture.
About half an hour later he started complaining from blurry vision and collapsed.
Attempts to revive him proved futile and he died with his girlfriend by his side.
It was later reported that the college didn’t have any antivenom on site, which could have
saved Layton’s life.
How to Survive?
Black mamba bites are very rare outside Africa and the most common victims in those cases
are usually snake handlers or collectors.
In the wild, black mambas are most irritable from September to February, a time frame in
which breeding occurs.
This is also the peak period for deadly encounters and thus the period when it’s best to avoid
trekking through the black mamba’s natural habitat.
They rarely tolerate humans approaching within more than 130 feet.
They’ll either attack or retreat into a bush or a hole.
There are a few signs that an attack is coming.
The snake will engage in a threat display that involves raising its head, opening its
mouth and flicking its tongue.
The black mamba may also hiss or spread its neck-flap.
Should you see such a display, it’s best to back away slowly without making sudden
moves.
Be sure not to accidentally block the snake’s path if it wants to retreat.
The black mamba is agile and delivers a series of rapid-fire strikes.
A bite is to be considered a medical emergency.
Death generally occurs within 30 minutes to 3 hours.
If help is not immediately within reach, standard snake bite treatment should be applied.
This means applying an arterial tourniquet or a bandage at the bite site and keeping
movement of the affected body part to a minimum.
Make sure the bandage is neither too tight nor too loose.
Don’t try to cut or suck the venom out.
Try to keep calm as an elevated heart rate may hasten the spreading of venom throughout
the body.
Medical treatment involves the use of polyvalent antivenom and several facilities have been
working towards developing specific black mamba antivenom.
Number 1: Danie Pienaar In 1998, years before he became the head of
the South African National Parks Scientific Services, Danie Pienaar was just a student
tracking white rhinos at Kruger National Park.
It was then and there that Pienaar barely survived a black mamba bite.
He was alone in the wilderness when he saw a black mamba slithering past him.
Pienaar then noticed four blue-purple holes in his leg.
It wasn’t long before he started to experience a metal taste in his mouth and a tingling
sensation in his lips and fingertips, the first symptoms of envenomation.
For a brief moment he considered resting against a tree and writing farewell notes to his friends
and family.
He didn’t think he’d manage to get help in time.
However, he ultimately decided to try and reach his pickup truck.
Even though he knew he shouldn’t, he tried to use his knife to open up the wound and
release the venom but was unsuccessful.
Pienaar then wrapped a belt around the upper part of his leg.
He left everything behind except for his gun and compass and moved slowly towards his vehicle,
careful not to raise his heartbeat.
He reached his pickup truck and darted through a tourist road until he found help.
Pienaar arrived at a hospital two hours after he’d been bitten.
His symptoms had intensified by then, but he was still able to tell the doctors what
had happened.
After they removed the tourniquet, Pienaar’s condition deteriorated rapidly.
He couldn’t swallow or speak properly and, at one point, lapsed into a coma.
He was incubated and spent three days on life support but ultimately recovered.
The fact that he’d managed to stay calm after being bitten and the decision to place
the tourniquet had most likely saved his life.
Thanks for watching!
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