The stonefish is said to have the world’s most painful venom, so Mark Vins decided he’d test one out. As one does. Photo: YouTube//Screenshot
The ocean can be a dangerous place. Like Australia, it’s full of stuff that can kill you. You can drown, of course, and get dragged over a sharp reef, too. But it’s also the creatures that live in the ocean. Sharks that take limbs off, jellyfish that wrap their poisonous tentacles around you, stingrays that stab you in the foot, etcetera. But the most toxic of all? The stonefish, a hideous animal that really, really doesn’t want to get stepped on.
“Stonefish have 13 spines lining its back that release venom under pressure,” writes The Ocean Conservancy. “If you inadvertently step on a stonefish thinking it’s a harmless rock, it will pop up its dorsal spines and release venom from two sacs at the base of each spine. Unsurprisingly, the more venom that is injected, the worse it is for you.”
Luckily, stonefish don’t go on the offensive. Their spines are used solely for defensive purposes, but unluckily, they also use camouflage for defense. They look very much like a stone — hence the name — and it wouldn’t be hard to swim by one without ever knowing you just had a brush with death.
Not only does the stonefish have very sharp spines, but it has the ability to inject large amounts of venom into an unlucky victim. Photo: YouTube//Screenshot
“Stings result in terrible pain, swelling, necrosis (tissue death) and even death,” The Ocean Conservancy continued. “One victim wrote online (which was later reported by ABC News) that after being stung on the finger, it was like ‘having each knuckle, then the wrist, elbow and shoulder being hit in turn with a sledgehammer over the course of about an hour.'”
So, with all that knowledge, Mark Vins from Brave Wilderness, a YouTube channel devoted to getting bitten by some of the world’s most painful biters, decided he’d see just how painful the world’s most toxic venom really is.
“Make no mistake, this is a very painful sting and I can’t stress enough that I’m a professional performing a controlled test,” Vins wrote. “DO NOT try to recreate this video. Stonefish stings have the potential to be life threatening to certain individuals.”
