Everything I've previously mentioned about rattlesnakes
is generally true. However there may be an important
exception: the snake expert presented brand new evidence
claiming that a particular strain of rattlesnake, the
Mojave Rattler (which supposedly appears in Arizona,
California, and Utah at least..), is much more poisonous
than other rattlesnakes. The word is supposedly that you
will die if you don't get the anti-venom in a few hours.
This rattler is also more docile than other rattle snakes.
So, some rattlesnakes may be much more poisonous than others.
If my contact remembers correctly, the Mohave snake is
on par with the cobra in terms of lethality. In such a case
using an ace bandage wrap to contain the poison, and possibly
losing a limb, may be preferable to dieing. A fun choice
eh? Further word is that it's probable these super-snakes
have been around for some time, but the occasional deaths
caused them were lumped together with all rattlesnakes,
thus making it seem like they weren't that lethal.
The other thing this person pointed out to me is that if
you're bitten, and you're alone on a trail, you might
consider wrapping the bitten limb with an ACE to keep the
poison localized, then then hike out to get the anti-venom
treatment ASAP. Personally I've seen the tissue damage
the contained poison seems to cause, and I'd be hard pressed
to make the decision to bind vs. not bind. This is
why prevention (i.e. snakeproof clothing) and caution
are the better choices than having to treat the bites.
Interesting. I never thought about how macho collecting
plants can really be :-) :-).
Robert