Poisonous snakes - A pet peeve of mine.

[Rawbbeh]

There's no such thing as a poisonous snake. Most of you herpers here know this.

Tired of hearing of "poisonous snakes" on the news, animal planet, from uneducated people etc etc. Same thing with spiders, I know of no poisonous spiders (and scorpions!)

Although it hurts my ears to hear people call them poisonous as much as it hurts to hear This: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbTsebLs7yU

I continually educate the uneducated...

Poison...is INJESTED, like rat poison....they eat it...and they die.
Venom, as in VENOMOUS, is injected, like doctors give you shots with a needle, venomous creatures use their fangs to deliver their payload.


/rant off


Had to rant because in the 5 seconds i heard from some program on animal planet, they were talking about how DANGEROUS this POISONOUS copperhead snake is.

[RoseyReps]

Animal planet makes me sad. So sad. I used to love that channel...
Since Irwin passed, it's been rapidly turning into crap. "Surprisingly Human"...Surprisingly stupid. Sounds about right. /sigh

[darthkevin]

There's no such thing as a poisonous snake. Most of you herpers here know this.

Tired of hearing of "poisonous snakes" on the news, animal planet, from uneducated people etc etc. Same thing with spiders, I know of no poisonous spiders (and scorpions!)

Although it hurts my ears to hear people call them poisonous as much as it hurts to hear This: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbTsebLs7yU

I continually educate the uneducated...

Poison...is INJESTED, like rat poison....they eat it...and they die.
Venom, as in VENOMOUS, is injected, like doctors give you shots with a needle, venomous creatures use their fangs to deliver their payload.


/rant off


Had to rant because in the 5 seconds i heard from some program on animal planet, they were talking about how DANGEROUS this POISONOUS copperhead snake is.

I clicked that video thinking it would be an animal planet clip. Then I nearly puked lol

[OhhWatALoser]

There are words we misuse within the hobby. Can't expect people outside of the hobby to get it right when we can't.

[Aes_Sidhe]

Actually.... Gonna wait for Skip to say few more details but......

If my memory is not clouded to much i believe there is couple poisonous snakes in reptile world.
They flesh is poisonous from accumulating secretions from frogs and toad with are they main prey.

With species exactly?? Kill me I don't remember... for sure Skiploder will remind us they names...

Butt going back to topic.. Yep... it getting annoying when You hear poisonous snake everywhere around...

To this point that when You actually hear venomous.... is like... O.o Really they said it right this time O.o

[chet1028]

Forgive my ignorance. I'm a snake rookie. But I have a thought and a question.
1. This seems to be a snooty, exclusionary objection to those who may not be as informed as you. It is very petty. People use two words interchangeably because for all intents and purposes, they mean the same thing. Should a person come in contact with poison or venom, they could be in serious danger.

2. Since snake venom, in many cases, is poisonous to humans, then snakes are poisonous, right? Consider a spitting cobra. If it spits on your mouth And you swallow it, you die.

Like I said, I think you're just looking for something to be annoyed by.

[rasslinrinyu]

Forgive my ignorance. I'm a snake rookie. But I have a thought and a question.
1. This seems to be a snooty, exclusionary objection to those who may not be as informed as you. It is very petty. People use two words interchangeably because for all intents and purposes, they mean the same thing. Should a person come in contact with poison or venom, they could be in serious danger.

2. Since snake venom, in many cases, is poisonous to humans, then snakes are poisonous, right? Consider a spitting cobra. If it spits on your mouth And you swallow it, you die.

Like I said, I think you're just looking for something to be annoyed by.

I agree with your point but they are not the same thing. If you drank venom, nothing would happen. Same if you injected poison. Venom attacks the nervous system through the circulatory system, usually breaking down blood cells and such. When poison is ingested it attacks the body usually through the organs. I feel the need to argue the point because as well as being in to reptiles I am also an English teacher. Snake venom is venomous to humans. It is not poisonous to us. People do use certain words interchangeably sometimes but it doesn't mean it is correct and tends to drives me nuts as well.

[mainbutter]

Don't worry, I understand your pain.

It's like when you guys use the term "co-dominant".

[ChrisS]

I almost clicked the video, then I realized what it was. Thank god I dodged that bullet. Calling venom poison is one of my pet peeves too. It almost bothers me as much as the middle of the toothpaste tube being squeezed. But I doubt most people will ever change what they call it.

[mainbutter]

Forgive my ignorance. I'm a snake rookie. But I have a thought and a question.
1. This seems to be a snooty, exclusionary objection to those who may not be as informed as you. It is very petty. People use two words interchangeably because for all intents and purposes, they mean the same thing. Should a person come in contact with poison or venom, they could be in serious danger.

2. Since snake venom, in many cases, is poisonous to humans, then snakes are poisonous, right? Consider a spitting cobra. If it spits on your mouth And you swallow it, you die.

Like I said, I think you're just looking for something to be annoyed by.

From Wikipedia:

In the context of biology, poisons are substances that cause disturbances to organisms,[1] usually by chemical reaction or other activity on the molecular scale, when a sufficient quantity is absorbed by an organism. The fields of medicine (particularly veterinary) and zoology often distinguish a poison from a toxin, and from a venom. Toxins are poisons produced by some biological function in nature, and venoms are usually defined as toxins that are injected by a bite or sting to cause their effect, while other poisons are generally defined as substances absorbed through epithelial linings such as the skin or gut.

Some venoms can be poisonous. Other are not. Both venoms and poisons are toxic (and, inherently, toxins). As a scientist, I care about proper terminology, particularly my own, and reprimand myself when I get it wrong all the time. We all make mistakes.

However, I find it to be a great sin to ignore proper terminology and continue to use phrases and terms incorrectly (particularly when talking about science!) when presented with the correct usage. Purposeful ignorance is not to be tolerated.