November 2007
The Black Mamba
Order
Family
Genus and species
Squamata
Elapidae
Dendroaspis polylepis
Members of the Elapidae family are all venomous
and deadly snakes and includes the cobras. Mambas
are found in S. Africa, Mozambique, Angola, Malawi,
Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, and
eastern Africa, and inhabit the lower
regions of the savanna grasslands as well as abandoned termite mounds,
lower limbs of trees and mammal tunnels. Some
species are aggressive but the black mamba is not and
will run away from humans rather than attack although when they are
cornered, they will bite and use their
long fangs to administer deep, often deadly, venom into the bloodstream
and muscles.
Not all black mamba bites are fatal.
This depends on the amount of venom injected, whether
the venom is
injected into the bloodstream or muscle tissue.
If it is the bloodstream, then the immediate administering of
antivenin must be carried out or the result will be fatal...if the
bite occurs in the muscle tissue, there is a bit
more time to get medical care. Before the
advent of antivenin, during the mid sixties, the bite of the black
mamba was 100% fatal.
The actual naming
of the black mamba is inaccurate. Most
black mambas are an olive greenish,
grayish
brown, or metallic gray color.
The reason they are called "black" mambas is because the interior
lining of
their mouth is jet black in color.
Younger black mambas are light gray or light green in color but they
will
noticeably darken as they get older.
After the king cobra, the black mamba is the longest
venomous snake in the world. The king cobra
will
often grow to a length of 16-18 feet with
the black mamba growing to a length of 12 to 14 feet.
Both
raise their head high off the ground when getting ready to strike and
are a menacing sight when they
become agitated and puff out their skin around
their heads. The cobra has a much more
pronounced
hood than the mamba, but both can strike fear into anyone witnessing
their intimidating show of power.
In the above graphic, this young black mamba has just molted.
Notice the old skin in front of and below
it's head. All snakes must lose their old
skin covering in order to grow. This is called
molting and is usually
accomplished as the snake wedges itself between two rocks or tree branches
and pulls itself forward....
pealing off the old skin covering and leaving it behind.
As already stated, the mamba grows to a length
of up to 14 feet, and will usually weigh around 4 to 7 lbs.
depending on it's age and length.
Mambas are one of the fastest moving snakes in the
world and when
trying to escape predators, can slither along at an
amazing 12 mph. Mambas mate in the spring and early
summer with the female laying up to 20 eggs in
rotting vegetation. The smell of the rotting grass helps to
hide the smell of the eggs and keeps would be predators away.
There is an incubation period of around
90 days and the resulting hatchlings are
actually pretty independent as soon as they are born and are soon
looking for small lizards, birds and other small
animals which make up the mamba diet. Hatchlings reach
full maturity after around a year when they are
3 to 4 feet in length. The lifespan
of the black mamba is
around 10-12 years in captivity and around 6-8
years in the wild.
The black mamba, as is the case with most snakes, is an important factor
in the animal and bird population
in the region in which they live. Their
venom is being studied as a possible treatment as a pain killer......
since the venom acts as a paralytic.
The black mamba is in no danger of extinction
although human encrouchment is thinning out their numbers
in certain areas of their range.
Press play below, to hear black mamba sounds.