Black Mamba

The black mamba is the fastest and deadliest snake in Africa. When disturbed, it is a fierce fighter. Gliding through the grass at seven miles per hour, with its head and tail lifted off the ground, it can strike at the level of a person’s head. Just two drops of black mamba venom can kill a person in ten minutes. But the black mamba is a shy snake. It will flee rather than fight.
This dangerous snake grows to be fourteen feet long. Its striking distance is half the length of its body. Large eyes and a tapered snout give the black mamba better eyesight than most snakes.
In early summer, the female black mamba lays nine to fourteen eggs among the dead leaves on the forest floor. When the baby snakes are ready to hatch, they use the sharp egg tooth on the tops of their snouts to break through the leathery shells of their eggs. A newborn black mamba is two feet long and already has fangs and a supply of venom. It will grow four and a half feet in its first year. As it grows, it will periodically shed its old skin.

What do these numbers stand for?

1. 14	4. 2 drops of venom
2. 7 miles per hour	5. 4.5 ft.
3. 2 feet	6. 10 minutes