Why are Australian animals so venemous compared to the rest of the world?
A lot of times, animals that are highly venomous live in areas that have few prey animals, either by overall numbers of animals or by the lack of the “right” prey. Thus, the venom is developed in order to help the predator hunt more successfully. I believe the “Browns” snake, or something like that in Australian, is one of the most venemous of creatures on the planet. It lives in the very dry desert where there are only a few rats to prey on… thus, it has developed it’s lethal poison in order to ensure it eats as often as possible considering there are so few prey animals around. I am sure there are other reasons as well for venom development, such as a defense mechansim (see the Cane Toads (sp?)) of Australia…
