The Gaboon Viper. One of South Africa's Deadly Dozen. The largest Viper in Africa.
These snakes have the largest fangs of all the snakes in the world.
In South Africa, they are restricted to the coastal area of Zululand on the Natal coast.
Because of the size of this snakes and the large fangs (up to 5cm long) and it's powerful venom and high yield of venom, a bite from this snake is most serious and can cause death quickly. When they bite their prey, they seldom let go as the prey dies within seconds.
Fortunately they are not aggressive but rather docile and seldom bite. People have been known to stand on them by accident and not be bitten!
They rank among the most beautiful snakes but remain hidden with their camouflage on the forest floor.