sucking the venom

Still perhaps the sexiest thing a person can do to a person.

Highlights:

"You're hiking with a friend. The sun is shining, the birds are singing -- you're feeling one with nature. Then the unthinkable happens -- as you step over a tree log on the trail, a snake beneath it lurches out and sinks its fangs into your calf."

"'No way, man! Then we'll both die.'  Is he right? Or, is he just a big coward who should be crossed off your friend list?"

"Non-venomous snakes have round pupils. Venomous snakes have elliptical pupils, like a cat's."

"Of course, this information implies that you're supposed to bend over and peer into the creature's face, which wouldn't be very smart."

" the venomous coral snake and the harmless milk snake, or scarlet snake, look nearly identical, except for the order of their red, black and yellow bands. To tell the difference, children are taught the rhyme, 'Red touch black, venom lack. Red touch yellow, kill a fellow.'"

"You might be wondering how long it would take a venomous snakebite to kill you."

"Tip: If your snakebite kit contains instructions for making an incision on the wound, throw it away and buy a more current kit."

"Using a tourniquet can damage nerves and blood flow. True story: In Tennessee, a well-meaning passerby used a tourniquet to help a farmer who'd been bitten by a snake. When the farmer arrived at the hospital, his blood pressure was so low from the tourniquet around his arm that he was only minutes from death [source: UPI]."

"Be careful -- due to reflex, a snake can actually bite for up to an hour after it's dead."