Venom: The Secrets of Nature's Deadliest Weapon Paperback – Illustrated, October 17, 2017

Book arrived on time and in mint condition. Pages are smooth semi-gloss, and photos included are clear and intense to say the least. The book focuses on the study of Toxinology as a whole covering pretty much all you need to know about the topic as a beginner to the venom world. Aside from all of the scientific terms you need to be able to learn and remember as you read through, there are many personal stories and real-world scenarios mentioned that make this book a page-turner. Happy reading!

Well constructed prose and extremely good illustrationsI can’t imagine a better overview of a fascinating topic

It’s a complete review of venoms in animal kingdom , it’s easy to read and helps to know the most inportants facts in this topic

Excellent overview. Really love it. A bit challenging for our 8 yr old grandson to read, but he understands the concept of the book by simply looking at the diagrams.

This book had the best reviews. Well written and filled with all the right facts any budding new herpetoligist needs to know.

"Venom" presents a fascinating general and sometimes quite specific look at toxins, venomous animals, the natural world and how venoms are used.Although I'm not a scientist, I read this book because I not only have a healthy mix of awe, fear, and respect for venomous animals, but I'm also very curious about them. I found "Venom" to be highly informative and quite manageable; i.e. easy for me to read and understand.Scientists will no doubt find some of the specific information enlightening, from the full page graphic of venom delivery structure in fishes to a comparison of the 3-D structures of a typical spider and scorpion venom toxin, to a comparison of the venom composition of the platypus and rattlesnake. There are many other charts and graphics as well as 100 color photographs that lend interest and information to the text.The number of different roles venom can have and how venoms are delivered stretches the imagination and this book provides a glimpse of their diversity, the animals involved and the functions of various venoms.If you're not already in awe of the Nature's evolutionary processes and the symbiotic relationship of living things, you surely will be after reading "Venoms and habitat creation" (60) as well as other sections.Venom delves into the realm of "why" and "how": "Venom cocktails typically contain a mixture of peptides and proteins, with their relative abundance varying among different venomous animals. The venom of a single front-fanged snake, such as a mamba or a rattlesnake, may contain over a hundred proteins representing a dozen or so different types of toxins. The most complex venoms, such as those of cone snails and spiders, can contain hundreds or even thousands of different proteins. Remarkably, there may be no overlap at all in the set of proteins present in the venoms of even closely related species, a situation that is especially striking for the complex venoms of cone snails." (78)Venom covers the "Evolution of Toxic Resistance," framing three ways animals gain resistance to venoms.One of my favorite full page photo-illustrations, "A Curious Concoction," defines the all-purpose remedy for afflictions as diverse as smallpox and snakebite, "Theriac," a mix of 70 or more ingredients, including opium, viper flesh, ground up mummy, cinnamon, and castoreum (a secretion from beavers). (166)If you like spiders and snakes, you won't be disappointed, although this guide isn't limited to those and includes a mind-blowing diversity of species. Jellyfish, platypus, slow loris, cone snail and more -- they're all here.Includes Glossary, Index, Further Reading, Photo Credits.NOTE: I've quoted from an "Uncorrected Proof." The first printed edition might not include my quotes.

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. It's highly readable and also thoroughly scientific. Venom is one of those topics that tend to be written about, often badly, in a kind of breathless It's-incredible style. It is the best book overall that I have read on venom, extremely informative and extremely well illustrated. It covers venomous creatures generally, from snakes and lizards to bees, wasps and cone snails.The book sees venom as a common and ancient characteristic of living creatures. I had no idea that there are some 200,000 species of venomous creatures known so far. I had no idea that venom kills so many people: venomous snakes bite 1.8 million people a year, and kill 100,000 people a year and result in 400,000 amputations. Venomous spiders and scorpions kill maybe 5,000 more.The book differentiates between poison and venom. Venom is produced by the animal using it, and injects toxins into another creature by wounds, usually bites. Poison is passive and usually results from another creature trying to eat one that is poisonous. Poison may come from an animal accumulating toxins from other sources, such as poison dart frogs becoming poisonous by eating arthropods such as mites and millipedes.An intriguing aspect is that venoms are of great medicinal interest, with a good many drugs resulting from research into venom. Only a relative few venoms have been thoroughly investigated. Venoms are extremely complex chemical cocktails. For example, an animal that feeds on the blood of other animals may have a venom that contains a painkiller, an anticoagulant to keep the blood flowing, and vasodilators to increase blood flow.Most of the book is accessible to the reader, One chapter on the chemistry of venom is interesting, but may be a little tough on readers with a so-so science background (like mine),