Animals and plants of New Zealand are the unique nature of the country. Why are there no snakes in Ireland? Are there snakes in New Zealand?

If you hate snakes and want to avoid encountering them at all costs, you should definitely go to New Zealand. After all, snakes are simply prohibited there (so much so that even their very existence is illegal).

Not only does this mean that you will never find a snake in the New Zealand wild (even if you do, it will soon be mercilessly destroyed). You can't keep snakes as pets there either. They are prohibited from being kept in zoos, research institutions or anywhere else. However, the owner of the snake will not get off with a small fine - just ask Nathan Bush.

In 2011, Bush purchased a pet snake. When she was discovered, he was brought to trial and sentenced to four months in prison. That's how serious New Zealand is about snakes. Essentially, if a New Zealander simply becomes aware of the existence of a snake in their country, they are legally obligated to report it to the authorities to help keep the country completely free of these reptiles.

Snakes are completely absent, at least on land in New Zealand. Fighting their sea counterparts, as you understand, is a little more difficult. Land snake species are not allowed into the country because none of them are native to the New Zealand islands.

New Zealand is famous for many things, including as the “land of the hobbits” (it was in this country that the film “The Lord of the Rings” was filmed). And, as it turns out, you can find a hissing Gollum there rather than a real snake. This is simply surprising given its proximity to southern Australia, home to some of the world's most dangerous snakes.

New Zealand is one of the few areas in the world where there are no snakes at all. Besides it, these are Greenland, Antarctica and partly the Hawaiian Islands. So if you are afraid of creepy crawlies, now you know where to go on holiday!

I present to you the TOP 10 places where you will instantly die, whether you want it or not.

1. Queimada Grande or Snake Island

“Snake Island” fully lives up to its name! It is home to very poisonous spear-headed snakes, the poison of which causes rapid death and suffering. If you think that you will not encounter snakes, then I dare to assure you that according to scientists, there are from one to five snakes for every square meter. It is forbidden for humans to set foot on this islet off the southwest Brazilian coast - it is forbidden for their own benefit. And all this because snakes now live there.

2. Lake of Death in Sicily.

The lake is located on the island of Sicily, hence its name. This lake is the deadest and most dangerous on the planet. The lake is absolutely lifeless, not only is there no fish in it, there is not even plankton in this lake. All the shores and waters of this lake are devoid of absolutely any vegetation or living creatures. And all because any living creature that gets into the aquatic environment dies instantly; a person who has swam in it will dissolve in the lake in a few minutes and swimming in it is mortally dangerous. Being near this place is also life-threatening.

3. Boiling lake in Dominica.

America has Yellowstone, New Zealand has hot springs in Rotorua. But none of them compare with the boiling lake in the Morne Trois National Park in Dominica. Located six miles east of Roseau, the 60-metre lake is considered very dangerous. The water temperature off its shores ranges from 80 to 90 degrees Celsius. The stones on the banks are extremely slippery due to the constant cooling steam, so many visitors simply fell into the boiling water and died. This lake is located right on a hole in the earth's crust, releasing steam from hot lava. There are no settlements nearby, and you can only get here via a 12-kilometer walk. Visibility is extremely limited due to a constant cloud of steam.

4. Namaskarda underground volcanoes.

Next on our list is another beautiful geothermal attraction located at the base of Mount Naumafjall in Iceland. It is quite smelly (due to heavy sulfur emissions) and cold land and is considered one of the most active volcanic areas in Europe. The ground is dotted with solfarates - boiling pools of mud, as well as fumaroles that shoot sulfur-rich steam into the air. There is constant geothermal activity just below the surface, making the earth very unstable. Visitors to the area are advised to travel only along marked paths, as the earth's crust may unexpectedly collapse here. Due to the boiling, smoking earth and complete absence of vegetation, Namaskar was called the “Gateway to Valhalla”.

5. North Sentinel Island.

We have two news: good and bad. The good thing is that you can visit a tribe that has rejected all the benefits of civilization, and whose way of life has remained virtually unchanged for 60 thousand years since its appearance. Thus, you can see with your own eyes the distant past of the Stone Age. The bad news is that the people of this tribe do not want you on their island. If you get there, they will most likely try to kill you.

The tribe lives on North Sentinel, a small island with an area of ​​about 72 km² off the coast of Myanmar. For centuries, the people living here, who have not even learned how to make fire, avoid any contact with the civilized world. And it seems that the Sentinelese, living under the protection of the Indian authorities, are quite happy with their lives and do not need any changes.

6. Dallol in Ethiopia.

The city of Dallol is located in a natural depression at the northernmost tip of Ethiopia. There's a reason this former mining town holds the record for the hottest place on Earth (based on year-round averages with a constant temperature of approximately 35 degrees Celsius). The nearby Dallol volcano has been dormant for almost a century, but there is evidence of ongoing geothermal activity. The constant humidity in these places exceeds 60%, and hot steam and sulfur from hot springs do not allow the earth to cool even at night. The brightly colored landscapes with lime green water, rust and crusts of blue salt are very impressive.

7. Death Valley in Kamchatka.

There is one anomalous place in Russia, which is located in Kamchatka. They call it Death Valley. It became known about it in the 30s of the XX century.

On the western slope of the Kikhpinych volcano, there are hot springs, there are small thermal terraces, which are cut by ravines. At the bottom of these ravines, weak streams of hot acidic water, gas and vapor make their way.

The lowest terrace became notorious among the local population, for which it was called Death Valley. The troubled valley was accidentally discovered by hunters who had lost their dogs.

After a short search, hunters discovered the corpses of dogs in the upper reaches of the Geysernaya River at the foot of the Kikhpinych volcano. What they saw made the hunters’ hairs on their heads stand up—an absolutely dead area. In the entire area there was not a blade of grass and a large number of dead animals: wolves, hares, birds, even bears, and here were the corpses of their dogs.

Seeing the terrible place of the tragedy, the hunters hurried to leave this “damn cemetery” and for good reason. The dogs that visited this strange place with them died after some time, and the people began to quickly lose weight, became lethargic, lethargic, and developed severe headaches.

Rumors about this mysterious valley quickly spread throughout the world. Several expeditions were sent to the Kamchatka Peninsula and more than 100 enthusiastic researchers flocked to it. Many of them died, and those who survived did not want to talk about this terrible place at all.

Research done by scientists has shown that in a valley 2 kilometers long and 300 meters wide, there is a large accumulation of hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide.

It was only in 1982 that researchers were able to establish that in the gases released from the Death Valley, in addition to hydrogen sulfide and carbon dioxide, there were highly toxic cyanide compounds, very dangerous for all living things.

If you ever find yourself in Kamchatka, be careful: Death Valley is hidden on the territory of the Kronotsky Nature Reserve. Animals trapped there die from poisoning. The same fate awaits a person if he spends any amount of time there. The mystery of the valley lies in the poisonous gases rising in this place from the bowels of the earth. There are several similar places on the planet, but the “Death Valley” gas mixture from Kamchatka is the most dangerous. As scientists have established, this “gas cocktail” quickly causes paralysis, so the animal, although it feels mortal danger, can no longer leave this terrible place.

8. The quicksand of Arnside.

Quicksand is most often found in the lowlands of hilly areas, on the shores of seas, rivers and lakes. This seems to be ordinary sand, which is either periodically filled with the tide, or has an underground river or some source of water underneath its layer, making its way to the top. Water fills the space between the grains of sand, pushing them apart and reducing the cohesion between them, causing the sand to become mobile.

When the underground water flow rises, the appearance of the sandy soil practically does not change, but it becomes extremely dangerous. Anyone who dares to step on it is instantly sucked in. The legs are squeezed by a hardened mass, and it is impossible to pull them out without outside help. This, for example, happened in 1999 in Arnside (England), where, in front of the parents’ eyes, sand sucked up to the waist of a four-year-old child. Fortunately, rescuers arrived in time and tragedy was averted.

Arnside is located near Morecambe Bay, notorious for its high tides and quicksand, where almost 150 people have died since 1990 alone. During low tide, the water here recedes far from the coastline, and the exposed sandy bottom quickly dries out, creating the illusion of an excellent beach, which in fact is fraught with mortal danger. People walking on the dry surface are trapped by quicksand, and the fast tide, which rises nine meters, covers the unfortunate people completely.

9. Forests of New Zealand.

They are beautiful in themselves, but if you come across the New Zealand nettle tree, or onaonga as the Maori call it, which grows up to 5 meters in height and is absolutely covered with hollow spines containing histamine and formic acid, run as far away from it as possible. But watch your step. This plant is quite common and can kill dogs and even horses by injecting a mixture of strong poisons under their skin. The fine, stinging hairs on the leaves contain histamine and formic acid. The first of these compounds causes a strong reaction throughout the body: blisters and redness appear on the skin. It’s difficult to call it poison, but getting a significant dose into the blood will lead to shock and collapse.

10. Top of Mount Washington.

In the middle of summer, a snow storm can suddenly calmly arise, sweeping away everything in its path, throwing ice needles into people's faces, piercing everything around with great speed. At the same time, the wind will blow at you at a speed of 327 km/h. Good luck!

According to the New Zealand Ministry of Primary Industries, which is responsible, among other things, for environmental safety, there are not a single land snake in this country. And the authorities want to maintain this state of affairs, so snakes are outlawed.

It's not just keeping or breeding land snakes that is illegal: even if you just saw a snake and didn't report it to the authorities, you could face a fine. There are no snakes in zoos or research laboratories. However, there are at least 2 species of sea snakes off the coast of New Zealand, but they are not counted because they spend their entire lives in the water.

Apart from New Zealand, snakes are not found in Greenland, Antarctica and some of the Hawaiian Islands.

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Its unique natural and animal world, rich in endemic plants and birds, is due to its remoteness from other lands and long-term historical isolation for 60-80 million years.

2. About 1000 years ago, when there were no permanent inhabitants on the islands, there were no mammals living on the territory of New Zealand, except for two species of bats, as well as whales, sea lions and seals that lived in coastal waters.

3. The active formation of European settlements in the 19th century provoked the emergence of new animal species. During the settlement of New Zealand lands, dogs and rats appeared on the islands, and later Europeans brought goats, cows, pigs, cats and mice to New Zealand.

4. This became a real test for the fauna of the islands. Rabbits, rats, stoats, ferrets and cats, which were brought in for hunting, reached large sizes because they had no natural enemies.

5. Currently, New Zealand's environmental authorities carefully monitor New Zealand's fauna, and some areas have been completely rid of animals that pose a threat to the country's fauna and flora.

New Zealand takahe bird

6. New Zealand is home to two types of endemic mammals, which are descended from rare species of bats. Animals of New Zealand, which can be called the most striking representatives of the fauna of this country: the kiwi bird, the world's largest owl parrot, the kakapo, one of the oldest reptiles, the tuatara, the only mountain parrot, the kea, the hatteria, and the European hedgehog.

7. Animals of New Zealand are also freshwater fish species, of which twenty-nine species live here. Eight of them are now on the verge of extinction.

8.More than 40 species of ants also live in this country.

9. For a long period of time it was believed that snakes did not live in New Zealand. But in the 2000s, a group of researchers from Australia and New Zealand discovered the remains of these reptiles. This discovery was proof that snakes did live in New Zealand approximately 15-20 million years ago.

10. For what reason these animals became extinct is not known to this day. A number of scientists suggest that this happened due to the Ice Age. Snakes simply could not stand the cold, and since New Zealand is located at a fairly distant distance from civilization, new species of reptiles could not be brought here in time.

Kiwi bird

11. The symbol of New Zealand - the kiwi - is positioned as a bird, although it cannot even fly, it does not have full wings.

12. Representatives of this genus of wingless do not have feathers, instead they grow hair, and they also have very powerful paws, with the help of which these creatures walk and run.

13.Kiwi are nocturnal animals. They developed the ability to hide in forests or bushes and be nocturnal, which reduced the likelihood of being eaten by other animals. The main enemies of kiwi are birds - eagles and falcons.

14.They are very aggressive. By the way, kiwis do not defend themselves with their beaks, like birds, but use their sharp claws.

15.There are five types of kiwi in total.

Owl parrot kakapo

16. Kakapo is a single representative of the subfamily of owl parrots.

17. His facial plumage is very developed, so he is similar to owls.

18. The parrot's feathers are green with black stripes on the back. The kakapo has excellent wings, but due to the fact that the keel of the sternum is practically undeveloped and the muscles are very weak, it cannot fly.

19. These endemics used to be widespread in New Zealand, but now remain only in the southwestern part of the South Island. The parrot lives in forests and areas with high humidity.

20. Kakapo is the only parrot that leads a predominantly nocturnal or crepuscular lifestyle. During the daytime, it hides in burrows or rock crevices.

New Zealand tuatara

21. Tuatara is a unique animal of New Zealand, a descendant of dinosaurs.

22.It is protected at the legislative level, and the government is trying to prevent the extinction of the population, since there are only one hundred thousand reptiles left.

23.They have a lot of enemies, including themselves (male tuatara are considered cannibals and can eat eggs and young offspring). They are also attacked by birds and other predators.

24. Among tuatara, mortality exceeds birth rate. Reproduction of offspring requires a long period.

25.These reptiles live up to about a hundred years. Tuatara's favorite food is insects.

Ermine

26. An ermine is a predator animal; it has 34 sharp teeth and paws with tenacious claws. These animals are very agile and crawl well through trees. The stoat eats small rodents and birds.

27. The stoat was brought to New Zealand to control the rabbit population. But the animal successfully acclimatized and began to reproduce very intensively, which led to an increase in the population. So the ermine turned from a helper into a pest, which began to destroy the chicks and eggs of local birds.

28. In New Zealand, they found the remains of flightless giant moi birds, exterminated more than five hundred years ago, whose height was three and a half meters.

New Zealand Kangaroo

29. There are also kangaroos here. These New Zealand animals prefer to be nocturnal and live in groups of several individuals. Many kangaroo species are on the verge of extinction.

30. New Zealand animals that cannot survive on their own live in 14 national parks and hundreds of small reserves under the constant supervision of specialists. Almost all animal species in this country are under state protection.

New Zealand giant skink

31. New Zealand lizards are skinks. There are three types of skinks: otago, sutera and greater skink.

32.They can often be seen on the rocks, where they bask in the sun. The number of large skinks alone, according to the Ministry of Nature Conservation, is 2-3 thousand individuals.

33. Otago is a giant among endemic lizards and reaches 30 cm in length.

34. Skinks breed every year. The offspring are usually 3–6 young. Lizards feed on insects and plant fruits.

35. Skinks have greenish-yellow skin with stripes that provide excellent camouflage in rocky, lichen-covered environments.

New Zealand fur seal

36. The New Zealand fur seal belongs to the species of eared seals. Their fur is grayish-brown in color. Males have a luxurious black mane.

37.These animals of New Zealand live throughout the ocean, primarily on Macquarie Island. It is inhabited year-round by young males who are not yet able to conquer their own territories.

38. At the end of the 19th century, large populations of fur seals were almost completely exterminated. Currently, the animals are listed in the Red Book; there are approximately 35 thousand of them.

39. Why aren’t snakes brought to New Zealand today? Of course, if there was such a need, snakes could be brought here, at least from neighboring Australia, but the fact is that snakes are outlawed in New Zealand.

40. Breeding or keeping this reptile at home in New Zealand is strictly prohibited! Also, those who accidentally saw a snake but did not report it to the relevant authorities will also face a fine.

New Zealand sea lions

41.The New Zealand sea lion is brown and black in color. Males have a mane that covers their shoulders, which makes them appear larger and more powerful. Females are much smaller than males, their fur is light gray.

42.95% of the fur seal population is found on Auckland Island. Each male defends its own territory from other males. In battles, the most resilient and strongest representative wins. There are approximately 10-15 thousand individuals of this species.

43.But still, there are snakes in New Zealand, only not terrestrial, but sea snakes - the already visible sea krait and the yellow-bellied bonito. These reptiles were left alive only because they do not crawl onto land and are practically not found near the coast of New Zealand.

44.So why are the authorities so sensitive and categorical about preventing snakes from appearing in New Zealand? And the answer is simple - the snakes would immediately destroy the main symbol of the country - the kiwi bird.

45.The most dangerous representative of the animal world of New Zealand is the feral boar.

New Zealand insect - weta

46.Weta lives here. This huge insect, weighing more than a sparrow, resembles a huge cockroach.

47.But there are no mosquitoes in New Zealand.

48. The carnivorous snail Powelliphanta, listed in the Red Book, is also found in the country. She is capable of devouring worms that are not inferior to her in size.

49.The smallest species of dolphin, Hector’s dolphin, lives off the coast of New Zealand. An adult reaches 1.4 m in length, which is smaller than the average adult.

50.However, despite strict control, there is still a certain advantage in the absence of snakes in New Zealand - the country is considered one of the safest countries in the world for outdoor travel.

photo from the Internet

An old Irish legend says that when St. Patrick baptized the country, he banished all the snakes from the Emerald Peninsula. First, the reptiles were collected on the top of Mount Crow, and then in the name of the Lord they were ordered to throw themselves into the sea. Historians believe that the patron saint of Ireland did a lot for the country, but the banishment of snakes cannot be attributed to his merits. The truth is that there have never been any creepy crawlies on this island nation.

Archaeological data

Let's start with historical and archaeological data. Ireland is a northern island country. Not a single archaeological excavation in the country has been able to find any signs of snake fossils. Historians believe that for a long time, even before the islands broke away from the landmass, a cold climate prevailed here and there was a kingdom of ice. Thus, reptiles were in no hurry to occupy the territory of modern Ireland. And after warming occurred, the British Isles became independent objects. Only now the snakes living on land in Europe could not reach the northern latitudes. Before them stood an impressive obstacle in the form of melted glaciers, leveled with sea water.

Animal migration

After the last ice age, the migration of animals from Europe began. This was approximately 10,000 years ago. At that time, the lands of Ireland and England had not yet acquired their modern contours, but they gradually dumped annoying glaciers into the sea. The first thing that began to explore new territories was large mammals: wild boars, bears and lynxes. It is believed that Ireland and England split over 8,500 years ago. The British Isles separated completely from Europe 6,500 years ago. This means that snakes had two thousand years to penetrate the territory of modern Great Britain. And so it happened; at present, snakes, copperheads and vipers live in Foggy Albion.

Other places where there are no snakes

In addition to Ireland, there are other island states and regions of large countries on Earth where there are no snakes. For example, snakes are not found in Greenland, New Zealand, Hawaii, Antarctica, parts of Canada and northern Russia. It turns out that St. Patrick was too busy exorcizing evil spirits. Well, all jokes aside, snakes deserved contempt among Irish Christians. People here have a pathological fear of reptiles and still blame them for the expulsion of Eve from paradise.

The former patron was depicted in the guise of a serpent

It is also known that the Celtic god of fertility was depicted as a reptile. His name was Cernunnos, and it was he who was worshiped by the locals before Christianity came to the island. It is believed that this is where the legend of driving out snakes came from. Saint Patrick succeeded his predecessor and got rid of the reminder. However, we already know the truth, and it is confirmed by scientists Nigel Monaghan, curator of natural history at the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin, and Mark Ryan, an expert at the Health Sciences Center at Louisiana State University.

The only exception