Ten Deadliest Snakes with Nigel Marven

Nigel explores almost every type of environment in China, climbing steep forested slopes and even wading into a sea cave to track down his top ten snakes. But which is number one?

Costa Rica has two venomous snakes for every hectare of land, including some of the world's most feared tropical snakes. Which of these kings of the jungle will make it to the top of Nigel's list?

The USA is the land of the rattlesnake - there are over 30 species of rattler found here. But what's the deadliest serpent in the country?

With almost 2000 snakebites causing 250 deaths every year, South Africa is a hot-spot for deadly snakes, with some of the most feared serpents in the world. But what's the most deadly?

On the trail of his top ten, Nigel meets worshipers and vipers at Penang's famous Snake Temple and meets a new squeeze, a snappy reticulated python over 4 meters long. But which of Malaysia's 40 venomous snakes will make the top spot?

Australia's renowned deadly serpents include the inland taipan, the most toxic serpent in the world, and the enormous king brown, which can deliver more venom in a single bite than any other snake.

Every year over a million people are bitten by snakes, with some 46,000 deaths - Nigel tracks down the ten deadliest. He meets an enormous king cobra and the infamous Russell's viper, a snake responsible for more deaths than any other.

Europe is home to some 50 species of snakes; around 19 of them are venomous. Nigel crosses the continent from Greece to Turkey, France to Spain, in search of the most dangerous asps and vipers.

Nigel comes face-to-face with the Philippine cobra, the most lethally venomous cobra on the planet. And in deep, dark caves on Palawan Island, the presenter searches for giant reticulated pythons sheltering from the heat of the day.

Infra-red cameras in the dead of night reveals a forest pit-viper sense and strike a target just fractionally warmer than its surroundings. Then there's the mussurana - a snake that not only eats other snakes but is immune to their venom.

In the tunnels of a leafcutter ant nest, we uncover a Central American coral snake sharing the burrow. Nigel meets a rattlesnake without a rattle, and a young Mexican cantil uses its white tail tip to attract prey close for a deadly strike.

Snakes are highly-adapted to survive in the scorching deserts of Arabia, and Nigel's skills are tested to find his top ten. Will the saw-scaled viper's venom and lightning reflexes be a match for the backwards strike of the puff adder?