Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
The Gila monster (Heloderma suspectum, / ˈ h iː l ə / HEE-lə) is a species of venomous lizard native to the Southwestern United States and the northwestern Mexican state of Sonora. It is a heavy, slow-moving reptile, up to 56 centimetres (22 in) long, and it is the only venomous lizard native to the United States.
When biting, the beaded lizard hangs on its victim and chews to get its venomous saliva into the wound. Although its jaw grip is strong, its unsocketed teeth are easily broken off at their bases. The beaded lizard's venom is a weak hemotoxin , and although human deaths are rare, it can cause respiratory failure .
Debate is growing as to whether goannas are venomous. The incessant bleeding caused by goanna bites had been thought to be the result of bacterial infection, but a 2005 study [6] suggested monitor lizards (including goannas) are venomous and have oral toxin-producing glands.
A Colorado man who was placed on life support after he was bitten by his pet Gila monster died of complications from the desert lizard's venom, an autopsy report obtained by The Associated Press ...
The reptile, “one of only a small number of venomous lizards,” are illegal to own in Colorado without a license, Eric Harper, an investigator with Colorado Parks and Wildlife, told CBS.
A Colorado man who died after getting bitten by a Gila monster was hardly alone in having the gnarly looking lizard for a pet. “It’s like getting your hand slammed, caught in a car door ...
The genus Heloderma contains the Gila monster (H. suspectum) and four species of beaded lizards.Their eyes are immobile and fixed in their heads. [2] [3] The Gila monster is a large, stocky, mostly slow-moving reptile that prefers arid deserts.
As a result, wounds from monitor lizard bites often bleed more than they would if they were simply lacerations. Venom may also cause hypotension. [33] In some species such as the Komodo dragon and the desert monitor, venom also induces a powerful neurotoxic effect. In the latter species for instance, envenomation causes immediate paralysis in ...