Queimada Grande Island, better known as Snake Island, is a Brazilian island located 145 kilometers off the coast of São Paulo and is home to over 4,000 species of venomous snakes.
The island, whose visitation is completely prohibited by local authorities, is known as one of the most dangerous in the world. Among the snakes that inhabit it is the golden lancehead (Bothrops insularis), which has venom capable of killing a human within an hour of entering the bloodstream.
In 2023, a YouTuber even managed to evade authorities and sneak onto the island. Fortunately, he managed to leave alive. He took a long boat trip and ventured to the island’s lighthouse, wearing metal armor to protect himself from any attacks.
But why is the island so densely populated with particularly dangerous snakes? According to reports, people lived there to take care of the lighthouse between 1909 and 1920. However, one story tells that the last lighthouse keeper and his family were killed when a number of snakes entered their home through the windows.
According to the Smithsonian Magazine, this is nothing more than an urban legend. The dense snake population of Queimada Grande Island began around 11,000 years ago when sea levels rose and isolated the island from mainland Brazil, causing the island’s snakes to evolve differently from their mainland relatives.
This happened because the snakes left on the island had no ground-level predators, allowing them to reproduce rapidly. However, having no predators also meant they had no ground-level prey, so to eat, the snakes climbed up and attacked migratory birds that would seasonally visit the island.
This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
