Curious Fact of the Week: The Worst Island in the World

When does a lovely tropical island become a no-go zone? When its tiny footprint is home to hundreds of thousands - possibly even millions - of venomous snakes with a bite that melts flesh.

The bite of the Golden lancehead pit viper, found only on this uninhabited island, causes swelling, pain, nausea and can cause intestinal bleeding, kidney failure, brain hemorrhage and severe necrosis of muscular tissue.

In case you are still thinking that Ilha de Queimada Grande, off the coast of Brazil, might be an unspoilt paradise perfect for the steely-willed reptile lover, consider that the pit vipers in question are considered so dangerous that, with the exception of some scientific outfits, the Brazilian Navy has expressly forbidden anyone from landing on the island.

WEAR BOOTS: SNAKE ISLAND, Brazil

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