High-speed, multi-angle videos shot at Venomworld in Paris let researchers watch 36 venomous snake species strike muscle-gel decoys, revealing three distinct attack styles. Most vipers hit within 0.1 seconds - faster than most mammals' startle response - and sometimes reinsert a fang for a better angle. Some elapids were equally quick; others took more than 0.3 seconds and bit repeatedly to prolong venom flow after sneaking closer. Rear-fanged colubrids, including Fischer's tree snake, dragged fangs to carve crescent wounds. "I flinched a couple of times," a co-author said. The work appears in the Journal of Experimental Biology.

Prepared by Olivia Bennett and reviewed by editorial team.