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Real Danger

amaliabastos

Published: Mar 24, 2013

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^{I was face-to-face with this Side-striped Palm Pit Viper (Bothriechis lateralis) on a nocturnal fauna tour. I was literally so close to it that my tele lens would not focus. I had to give several steps back to photograph it. These are some of the most venomous snakes in Central and South America. They position themselves like this when they are hunting (it is known as the attack position) and prey on birds and other small animals which cross its way. They are responsible for the majority of coffee plantation accidents, since they very often hide in coffee trees and are difficult to distinguish from the foliage, especially in the early morning and late afternoons, when there is little light and workers are still collecting coffee beans. I was terrified to be so close to it (since it can move over half its body length to reach out for prey) and it is known to attack humans when threatened, but I'm glad I got the shot and walked out alive and intact. We later saw another smaller one on the same trail. We encountered several very cool and very dangerous snakes on our walk.
(My mother and I also got lost from the rest of the group in the middle of the tour, but that's a story for another time )
Monteverde Cloud Forest, Puntarenas, Costa Rica.
Canon 7D.

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