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The boomslang is a colubrid snake within the subfamily Colubrinae.It belongs to the genus Dispholidus, which contains two other species, D. pembae and D. punctatus.. The boomslang is thought to be closely related to members of the genera Thelotornis, Thrasops, Rhamnophis, and Xyelodontophis, with which it forms the taxonomic tribe Dispholidini.
Venom metering is the ability of a snake to have neurological control over the amount of venom released into a target during a strike based on situational cues. This ability would prove useful as venom is a limited resource, larger animals are less susceptible to the effects of venom, and various situations require different levels of force.
Boomslang venom causes disseminated intravascular coagulation, a condition in which so many small clots form in the blood that the victim loses the ability to clot further and bleeds to death. Later that evening, Schmidt felt slightly ill. By the next morning, the lethal effects of the venom rapidly became evident.
The venom of some opisthoglyphous snakes is strong enough to harm humans; notably, herpetologists Karl Schmidt and Robert Mertens were killed by a boomslang and a twig snake, respectively, [2] [3] after each underestimated the effects of the bite and failed to seek medical help.
The boomslang's venom is the most potent of all rear-fanged snakes in the world based on LD 50. Although its venom may be more potent than some vipers and elapids, it causes fewer fatalities owing to various factors (for example, the fangs' effectiveness is not high compared with many other snakes, the venom dose delivered is low, and ...
[4] [30] In the king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) [31] and Eastern green mamba (Dendroaspis angusticeps), [32] 3FTx proteins make up about 70% of the protein toxins in venom; in the desert coral snake (Micrurus tschudii) the proportion is reported as high as 95%. [33] Genes encoding three-finger toxins are thought to have evolved through gene ...
In order to inject venom, colubridae must chew on their prey. [11] Colubrids can also be proteroglyphous (fangs at the front of the upper jaw, followed by small solid teeth) [ 4 ] Most Colubridae are oviparous (mode of reproduction where an egg is produced that will later hatch) with clutch size varying by size and species of snake.
The volume of venom produced is largely dependent on the size of the snake, with larger snakes producing more venom; Queensland eastern brown snakes produced over triple the average amount of venom (11 mg vs 3 mg) than those from South Australia. [66] Worrell reported a milking of 41.4 mg from a relatively large 2.1-m (6.9-ft) specimen. [67]