The Puff Adder 🐍 Known as one of Botswana’s most widespread venomous snakes, the Puff Adder (Bitis arietans) relies on ambush tactics rather than speed. With its striking camouflage, it can remain unseen until it’s almost too late making accidental bites common. ⚠️ Venom Insight: The Puff Adder’s venom is cytotoxic, meaning it destroys tissue around the bite area. Bites can cause severe pain, swelling, and tissue damage and require urgent medical attention! 💡 Did You Know? Despite their danger

This video of a Snouted Cobra (Naja annulifera) killing a Puff Adder (Bitis arietans arietans) is doing the rounds on social media. Cobras, especially the Snouted Cobra and Cape Cobra (Naja nivea) are well known for eating Puff Adders and often get bitten in the process. They appear to be immune against the venom of other snakes and appear to suffer no ill effects after such bites. Source unknown. | African Snakebite Institute

Why do we call this snake a puff adder? Well looking at this video you can see that it is a very appropriate name for this snake. The puff adder will inhale and exhale air through its nostrils and this causes the sound that tells you, Watch out! | African Reptiles and Venom

This is a female puff adder warning me to stay away from her. This is why we call these snakes puff adders, because of this huffing and puffing threat display. If you walk in the bush and you hear this sound stand very still and then carefully look around you to see where the snake is. Once you spot it, slowly walk in the opposite direction and just leave the snake alone. The snake has warned you of its presence and by you responding in a correct way, you didn’t get bitten. | African Reptiles an