VENOM MAN

AN UNEMPLOYED factory worker has proved his immunity to snake venom by letting a deadly mamba bite his bare arm. Through a process of building up his immunity to poison by injecting diluted venom 45-year-old Tim Friede is able to not only survive a snake bite from a black mamba, which normally kills anyone bitten within just 20 minutes, but instead appears totally unaffected. This indifference by Tim is despite the bloody wound to his arm the lethal creature caused when Tim placed the mamba's jaws around his arm and the snake took a bite which injected poison into his arm. Tim hopes that by building up human immunity to snake poison he can contribute to the development of a new anti-venom, more efficient and affordable than the type produced from horses that is currently available. Where no anti-venom is available to people bitten by a black mamba the death rate is usually 100-percent..

Other great stories
PORCUPINES COME CLOSE TO VICTORY AGAINST PRIDE OF HUNGRY LIONS

Jostling their quills into the noses of some unlucky cubs, this is the moment two feisty porcupines ALMOST defeat a pride of seven lions .

HUNGRY CHAMELEON CATCHES DINNER

EXPERTLY camouflaged, this clever panther chameleon knows how to catch its prey by surprise .

GOOGLEMAP WHALESHARKS

DIVING boffins fired harpoons into 30-foot-long whale sharks in a bid to put the sea-beasts on Google Maps .

THIRSTY SQUIRREL TAKES A BREAK

DIPPING his head into the vase of water, this little squirrel takes a refreshing break from an afternoon of eating .

GLACIER ICE CLIMBING

COURAGEOUS climbers descend 400 metres as they manoeuvre their way through thick walls of ice .

FRIENDLY TOAD READY FOR HIS CLOSE UP

STARING eagerly into the camera, this little toad is full of curiosity .

UNDERGROUND CHIC

Full of tired and busy commuters, these underground stations are rarely admired for their architecture or beauty .

BEAR AND FOX IN SHOWDOWN

This is the moment a nimble red fox and a lumbering Alaskan brown bear were locked in a tense stand-off .

LIFE ON THE LINE: SLUM LIES NEXT TO ACTIVE RAILWAY

Families in an Indian slum put their lives on the line by living on top of an ACTIVE railway track .

POLAR BEARS HAVE A SPLASHING TIME

Playing, splashing and generally messing around, these polar bears show they certainly have a soft spot for the water, and not just each other .

PEEK-A-BOO FISH: BRIT SNAPPER MAKES RARE FIND

A Brit photographer has captured one of the world's most camera-shy species of fish - during a game of underwater peek-a-boo .