Black-headed Bushmaster: lachesis melanocephala
"If you are bitten by a Bushmaster, it is better to lie down under a tree and rest, for you will soon be dead."
Classification:
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: Squamata
Family: Viperidae
Habitat: The Black-headed Bushmaster is only found on a small versant on the Pacific coast in Southeast of the Puntarenas Province in Southwestern Costa Rica. They live from sea level to 1500 meters (4,900 feet) in tropical rainforest. They are very rare and hard to spot, because they can stay camouflagued and coiled in one spot without moving for weeks.
Description and Behavior: As its name suggests, the Black-headed Bushmaster has a black head and black diamond markings on its otherwise brown or yellow back. Adults are usually 2 meters (6.6 feet) long, but the longest ever recorded was 2.4 meters (7.9 feet). They mainly eat small rodents and other mammals, which they strike and hold on to. When it is not hunting, it will spend time in underground tunnels. It is the longest venemous snake in the world, but it has the smallest smallow threshold. It is also the only snake known to perform a courtship ritual.
Threats: Although they are rare, the Black-headed Bushmaster is not endangered or threatened.
Fatality: Most victims of Bushmaster bites die soon after, and survivors are rare. However, a survivor described the experience by saying, “the room seemed to have grown enormously large, and myself shrinking away. I saw beautiful purple colors.” The events leading up to death include rising pulse, uncontrollable drooling, vomiting, chills, blood pressure drop, kidney pain, inability to speak, and consciousness through it all.