In the action movie "Kill Bill" the lead character goes by a nickname, "Black Mamba." She's a killer: She strikes quickly and fatally — just like her namesake the black mamba snake, the most feared snake in Africa.
The mamba is found throughout most countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and is incredibly fast, traveling at speeds up to 12 miles per hour. It's also large; the second largest snake in Africa, and aggressive and territorial, characteristics not usually attributed to snakes.
The black mamba actually isn't the most deadly snake on the continent; that honor belongs to the Puff Adder Viper, which is also the most common poisonous snake in Africa and has the most contact with humans.
But villagers and experts alike fear the intense pain and suffering the mamba inflicts on its victims. Its poison is neuro-toxic. Unlike most poisonous snakes where the venom travels slowly through the blood stream, allowing a victim time to get treatment and to isolate the poison using a tourniquet, the black mamba's poison goes straight for the nerves, attacking the central nervous system and shutting down major organs. Twenty minutes after being bitten you may be lose the ability to talk. After one hour you're probably comatose, and by six hours, without an antidote, you are dead.
source : abcnews.go.com
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