Anyone who speaks with me for any length of time in regards to snakes will usually ask many questions about habitat, care, personal experience, etc. Inevitably the conversation turns to one of my favorite subjects; venom.
First of all, I must begin by explaining that venom is not poison and vice versa. While venom and poison may have some similar effects on the human body and may even share some similar properties by definition they are two completely different substances.
Poison by definition is a substance which is inhaled, ingested, or absorbed in some way. It doesn’t have to kill you; it may make you sick or may have no effect at all.
Now then, venom is a toxin which is injected by another animal via a stinger, fang, tentacle, etc. Once again some may kill you and although rare there are folks out there that are completely immune to certain venoms. So now with the information above we can see that there are no such things as poisonous snakes, spiders, scorpions, or centipedes. All of these creatures are capable of producing venom. As an aside, all scorpions and spiders are venomous. However, most spiders are so small that their fangs can not penetrate human skin. Also the larger the pincers on a scorpion the less potent the venom.
See Bryan D Hughes Guest Post on Rattlesnakes in Captivity
Wow!! I didn’t realize the differences between Venom and Poison. I thought they were the same thing.
If I were to come across a reptile, insect, or amphibian, what would be a good, initial, indicator that is may be Venomous?
Well here in Southern California if the snake has a triangular head its a pretty safe bet its Venomous. Other than that the best thing to do is be aware of where you put your feet when hiking and hands when climbing. Also the obvious “rattle” is not always a dead give away no pun intended but many species such as San Diego Gopher Snakes Pituophis catenifer annectens will rattle its tail in dry brush or leaves and sounds amazingly similar to Rattlesnakes and has even fooled many experienced people myself included. They will also strike out at a would b predator as well I will be soon posting about Rattlesnakes so make sure and come back every week or subscribe via email and you can get notified.