Venom exhibition in the Natural History Museum
“Pure, intense, brilliant pain. Like walking over flaming charcoal with a three-inch nail embedded in your heel”. Graphic? Terrifying? Dramatic? Well, that’s Justin O. Schmidt’s description of an actual Bullet Ant’s bite he experienced. Was the bite accidental? Not at all, the biologist experimented with his own body, allowing over thousand of venomous creatures to bite him, producing a diary of his pain experiences. Do you want to read more of his fascinating notes? Then head to the Venom exhibition in the Natural History Museum!
Whether you’re fascinated by snakes, spiders and venomous creatures or terrified and appalled by them, the Venom exhibition is an exciting and geeky experience I recommend. Learn how various species use venom for different purposes, from attracting the opposite gender to defending themselves. See how they’ve evolved over millions of years, adapted and transformed. Find out how people use and abuse the venom they produce. Prepare to see a live goliath bird-eating spider running around its glass display, discover how different mambas look like and learn why you don’t want to travel to Australia, seeing that all the deadliest creatures live there!
For this exhibition, the Natural History Museum has put together some of their best venomous exhibits, such as the head of a gaboon viper, the snake with the biggest known venomous fangs, combining with fascinating scientific research of some truly impressive scientists of the field. For example, there is an interview of Steve Ludwin you can listen to – a man who spent the last 30 years injecting himself with and surviving (!) venom of the deadliest snakes in the world.
Sounds all too scary? There’s a twist: While it can bring lots of pain and suffering, venom is actually something we, humans, use and need in daily life to save ourselves and improve our health! Interested to find out how? Venom exhibition has all the answers, my friend.
Here is the perfect quote that sums it up. “Refined over millions of years of evolution, venom is nature’s ultimate weapon. There’s no escaping its presence in our lives. Injected underneath the skin it can wreak havoc within seconds, but within the destruction there is beauty. Venom could save your life.”