Queimada Grande Island – Territory of Scary Reptiles (7 photos + 1 video)

Off the coast of Brazil there is an interesting – not mystical, but truly scary – island that can only be visited by researchers and the military.





After all, for every square meter here there is a snake - including one of the deadliest in the world...



Ilha da Queimada Grande - as it is called in Portuguese - is a rock located 33 kilometers from the mainland of Brazil. It is known as Snake Island because of the thousands of venomous snakes that inhabit its 43 hectares.





The golden lancelet is a species of venomous viper found nowhere else in the world. It has evolved in isolation since sea levels cut it off from the mainland 11,000 years ago. At less than a metre long, it is considerably smaller than its closest relatives, but has a reputation as one of the most dangerous snakes on the planet. Legend has it that snakes were settled here in the 15th century to protect some semi-mythical treasures (probably a gold hoard, given the name of the hissing guards). And they multiplied so much that they drove both people and all other living creatures from the island.



They say that for every square meter of Ilha da Queimada Grande there is one snake. If not more. It is not surprising that visiting this place is allowed only to scientists and military personnel, provided that they use special protective suits. When YouTuber Lord Miles landed on the island in 2023, unbeknownst to Brazilian authorities, he wore a bulletproof vest to protect himself from bites.

Does Snake Island deserve its reputation?



But is the island's terrifying reputation justified? In reality, there are very few, if any, fatal bites from golden lancelets on humans. According to biologists who study the vipers, they are not aggressive and do not react to the approach of people. In fact, their venom is designed to immobilize birds, not mammals.

The snake specializes in eating two species of migratory songbirds: the Chilean elania, which passes through every spring, and the yellow-legged thrush, which appears in the fall. Interestingly, the island's two resident birds, the southern house wren and the bananaquit, seem to be able to avoid the vipers.



By the most rough estimates, the number of snakes on the island fluctuates between 2,000 and 4,000. Even at the upper limit, that's more than 100 m2 per snake.



Perhaps the snake population was larger in the past. The species is now endangered and the population is declining, at least in part due to illegal capture for the exotic pet trade: a single snake can sell for up to $30,000. In that case, perhaps the official ban and the horror stories that have followed are more about protecting the snakes than they are about protecting people.