Boomslang (if you're not an Afrikaans speaker you'd be surprised what the name sounds like, properly pronounced) are one of Southern Africa's dangerously venomous snake species - a microscopic amount of Boomslang venom can be fatal to an adult human.

That being said, they are extremely timid snakes and bites are rare - they would much rather flee than face a human.

Largely tree-living, they do sometimes descend to the ground to bask. It is a popular myth that being back-fanged they can only bite onto a small digit in actual fact they open their mouthes wide enough to easily bite a human anywhere on their body should they wish to do so.

Hatchlings and juveniles are grey with a massive emerald green eye but change to the adult colours once they reach a length of roughly 1m. Most males are bright green, sometimes with black between the scales but in the Cape Provinces they are usually black above with green, yellow or orange sides. Females are brown in colour.

Boomslang venom is haemotoxic and compromises the blood clotting mechanism, causing uncontrolled bleeding if not treated. The South African Vaccine Producers manufacture a monovalent antivenom for Boomslang bites that is very effective.

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