[masraum]

Originally Posted by red-beard

Most of the poisonous sneks (danger noodles) are night active. But the red touchy yellow fellow (Coral) is day active. And my under standing, that is the really deadly snek in the USA

https://www.livescience.com/43938-coral-snakes-colors-bites-farts-facts.html

They have the second-strongest venom of any snake (the black mamba has the most deadly venom), but they are generally considered less dangerous than rattlesnakes because coral snakes have a less effective poison-delivery system.

Bite

According to the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, unlike most other venomous snakes, the coral snake cannot contract its fangs into its mouth. Instead, they are constantly out and erect. Their fangs are relatively weak.

According to National Geographic, though their venom is highly toxic, no deaths from coral snake bites have been reported in North America since the late 1960s, when antivenin was developed. No deaths from a Western coral snake have been reported at all. Nevertheless, their bites can be extremely painful and, if left untreated, can lead to cardiac arrest.

Coral snakes’ small, fixed fangs and small mouth mean that it is difficult for them to puncture human skin — let alone leather boots. Humans are mostly bitten when trying to pick up a coral snake. Because of their small size, these snakes don’t carry much venom in their fangs, so they may try to hold onto their victim for some time.

According to Viernum, “One of the most distinctive behavioral characteristics of coral snakes is how they deliver their venom. Since their fangs are short and fixed, they deliver their venom through chewing motions.” She described this process as “similar to the way Gila monsters deliver their venom to prey.”

The snake’s neurotoxic venom causes rapid paralysis and respiratory failure in its prey; however, according to the National Institutes of Health, it can take many hours for symptoms to appear in humans. Additionally, there is often little or no pain or swelling in humans from a coral snake bite. If untreated by antivenom, however, symptoms will take effect. They include slurred speech, double vision, and muscular paralysis.

on a more entertaining note.

Coral snakes are slender and small, typically between 18 and 20 inches long (45 to 50 centimeters), with some species reaching 3 feet (1 meter). According to DesertUSA, the Western coral snake can be as skinny as a pencil. They have bulbous, almost-neckless heads, rounded noses and similar-looking tails, meaning that it can be hard to tell a snake’s head from its tail.

They use this characteristic to fool attackers by burying their heads in their coiled bodies and raising their tails — which look quite similar to their heads. “The idea for this behavior is that it’s always better to lose your tail than your head,” Viernum said.

When provoked, coral snakes will sometimes make a popping sound by expelling air from their cloaca, a single opening for the urinary, reproductive and intestinal tract, to startle the threat. According to researcher Joseph F. Gemano Jr. in an article in Reptiles magazine, these "microfarts" have been observed in other species, such as the Western hook-nosed snake. Scientists disagree about the behavior's purpose. Some have speculated that it is a mating call, but Gemano said that in his research, the fart was always associated with an aggressive-defensive behavior.