The "Horse Killer"

     In Snap Shots, Chapter 12 is titled "Matacaballo," which is Spanish for horse killer.  It is a name that is given to a large venomous snake in Ecuador that is commonly known as bushmaster in English.  The matacaballo/bushmaster is one of the largest known venomous snakes in the world.  It can easily grow to over ten feet in length and very thick in girth.  In fact, some often mistake it for the none venomous boa or other python family constrictors.  In el campo, or the countryside, where medical facilities are far and few in-between, any kind of venomous snakes are feared by the inhabitants far more than in the more developed, urban areas.  The reason is very simple.  Whereas in urban areas a snake bite victim can be quickly taken to a medical facility and receive anti-venom treatment, in some of the more isolated villages, it may take hours, sometimes days, to reach clinics or hospitals for proper treatment.  Therefore, death from venomous snake bites is not an unheard of thing!
     Of all the poisonous snakes found in Ecuador, the matacaballo is probably most feared, mainly because of its very aggressive nature.  The fer-de-lance, a highly venomous smaller viper, is known as dos pasos (two steps in Spanish) and is also feared very much.  The name of two steps was given because it is believed that if your are bitten by this snake, you can only take two steps before you died!  The fer-de-lance or dos pasos is probably more venomous than the matacaballo, but it is the bigger snake that is feared most.  The rattlesnake, called cascabel, is also common in Ecuador but does not seem to have quite the reputation of the other two, especially the large "horse killer."
     During my two tours of duty in Ecuador which amounted to almost seven years, I spent an awful lot of time in the countryside, pursuing my favorite pastime of bird hunting on the weekends.  During those outings, I had on numerous occasions encountered snakes.  Most of the time they were none poisonous variety, but on occasion, they were the much feared matacaballo.   In most cases we simply made a detour, avoided confrontation with the very aggressive snake.  Unlike most wild animals and snakes in particular, the matacaballo does not move away or try to escape when it is confronted by a human.  I have seen many snakes in the wild, including cobras and other venomous snakes and I can say truthfully that none were as aggressive as the matacaballo!  In all of the instances when we encountered the matacaballo, the snake would not move or give ground and we were forced to make a detour.  In some cases, when we couldn't make the detour, we were forced to kill the snake.
     I described several encounters with the matacaballo in the story that was in the Snap Shots.  In each instance, when we had to dispatch the snake, it was my friend Lorenzo who ended up doing the job.  Because of Lorenzo's snake killing activity, his cousin Emilio jokingly called him mataculebras, the "snake killer."  He was given this name after the incident in Manabí where Lorenzo was forced to dispatch a very ill tempered matacaballo that not only stole our doves that fell near by, but threatened our passage through the only trail out of the area.  The snake just refused to move and instead attempted to attack us!
     The matacaballo, deservedly or not, has a fearsome reputation in Ecuador.  As its name implies, it is supposed to be so strong and venomous that it can kill a horse with its bite.  I have no doubt that it can kill a horse, since even the smaller rattlesnakes have been known to kill a horse with its venom.  Whatever the case may be, the matacaballo, with its colorful name of "horse killer," is a venomous snake that ranks right up there with the Australian tiger snake, African black mamba, and the cobras of India, Africa, and Southeast Asia.  The matacaballo of Central and South America may not be as poisonous as some of the others, but it is one scary snake that is extremely aggressive and big!  To me, it much more dangerous, because of its very aggressive nature, than our rattlesnakes and the Okinawan habu.  I have had many encounters with rattlesnakes and in fact almost stepped on some, and I encountered habu on Okinawa when I was hunting as a kid.  But neither the rattlesnakes nor the habu make me quite so wary as the matacaballo of Ecuador.