There is a terrifying isolated island in Brazil, 35 kilometers away from Sao Paulo, the largest city in Brazil. Because there are no human activities on the island, the trees are lush and the scenery is pleasant. However, it is definitely not a holiday destination. On the contrary, it is one of the most dangerous islands in the world. It can be said to be a purgatory on earth. If humans ventured to the island, they would not survive for more than an hour. It is the Grand Quemada Island, known among the people as the Brazilian Snake Island.
In 1909, the Brazilian Navy took great risks to build a lighthouse on the island in order to pilot navigation. Later, it hired a family of five-a couple and their three children to guard the lighthouse. . But one night, I don't know if the door was not closed tightly or for some reason, several venomous snakes crawled into their house and bit the man. Others were so frightened that they fled in a hurry and were bitten to death by poisonous snakes on the roadside or hanging on trees. No one survived. When the navy landed on the island to check, they found the bodies of five members of the family lying in five different places, all bitten to death by venomous snakes. After that, the lighthouse had to be transformed into automated operation. Since then, everyone's talk about the island has changed, and the government has issued a ban prohibiting local residents and foreign tourists from landing on the island. After studying Snake Island, researchers found that the density of snakes on this island has reached an astonishing 1-5 snakes per square meter. The snakes on the island are all highly venomous snakes with golden headbands, among which the most poisonous ones are It's the Golden Spearhead Viper. Its venom is five times more toxic than similar venomous snakes on land! It can be said to be the most venomous snake in the world.
If a human is bitten, he will quickly suffer from cerebral hemorrhage, kidney failure, and the skin and muscles will dissolve. Without injection of serum, he will die within 40 minutes.
Why is Snake Island formed?
As cold-blooded animals, the venomous snakes on the island can hibernate in winter, greatly reducing energy loss, which is naturally obtained on an island where food is scarce. As a survival advantage, some snakes have even evolved the ability to aestivate because food is so scarce.
When they are not sleeping, they eat cockroaches, centipedes and other insects to satisfy their hunger. In addition, they also have an annual feast for migratory birds: migratory birds will stop briefly on the island during migration, and this is their opportunity to improve their meals and replenish energy. In this way, survival of the fittest, the fittestOnly those who survive will eventually take over the entire island.
Why are snakes on the island more venomous than those on land? Although migratory birds come to the island every year to give people their heads, they are not so easy to eat. In terms of size, the venomous snakes on the island are not dominant, and the venomous snake's strategy for preying on large animals is generally to bite it, then follow it until the poison is activated, and then feast. But migratory birds can fly, and snakes can't keep up. If the bitten migratory bird flies out of the island before the poison attacks, the final result will be to fall into the sea and feed the fish. Even if it doesn't fly out of the island, even if it flutters a few times and falls somewhere else, with the density of snakes on the island, it will definitely become a meal for other snakes.
So in order to compete for food, the snakes on the island competed and began to involute. Only those snakes that are poisonous enough to kill with one blow can eat enough and have enough energy to breed offspring, while those snakes that are not poisonous enough will slowly be eliminated if they cannot eat enough food. Through this process of evolution from generation to generation, the golden spearhead vipers on the island are now five times more toxic than their land counterparts!
Can releasing honey badgers onto the island completely eliminate venomous snakes? As a bug on the earth, humans have a hundred ways to eliminate the venomous snakes on the island, but there is no need to do so. So most netizens thought of honey badgers. Can Snake Island be captured by putting them on the island?
The honey badger is also known as the flat-headed brother. He is well known for his temperament of taking life and death seriously. In the eyes of Brother Pingtou, no matter how poisonous the snake is, it is just a walking spicy stick. Even if it is accidentally bitten by a snake, they will just take a nap, and when they wake up, they will find the snake and chew it to pieces (if the snake does not go away) if far).
The honey badger entering Snake Island is like a person who likes spicy chips entering a spicy chip factory. It has a great appetite and will soon conquer the city and occupy Snake Island. It thrives on an island with no natural predators.
But when the number of honey badgers increases to a certain level, the number of snakes will gradually decrease. Once the balance is broken, the honey badgers will face a food crisis. After all, Flathead Brother cannot fish and cannot catch migratory birds. Since they already have a preference for preying on younger members of the same species, cannibalism is inevitable at this time. As the last honey badger starves to death in a certain winter, the snakes after hibernation and the little snakes that emerge from their shells will reoccupy the entire island, so letting honey badgers in may not occupy the island for a long time.
Postscript: In fact, compared to various high-tech methods of human beings, the creatures on the earth are more afraid of being labeled as delicious and nutritious., labels that can cure diseases. After studying the golden spearhead vipers on the island, scientists discovered that their venom has anti-hypertensive, anti-aging and even anti-cancer potential, and applied for a patent. After that, the price of the golden spearhead viper also increased. Many people took the risk and risked their lives to poach the venomous snakes on the island. In 2014, its price on the black market had risen to US$10,000 to US$30,000 per piece, and most of the buyers were pharmaceuticals. , scientific researchers in the field of health care, and rich people who like to eat game. In the past 20 years, the most venomous golden spearhead viper on the island has declined by nearly 50%. Because it is the only one found on this island, one less snake is caught. International organizations have classified it as a critically endangered species. In the past, it was forbidden to land on the island because of the fear of human death, but now, it is because of the fear of death of snakes.