In advice to British military personnel serving on the UK’s two sovereign bases on Cyprus, the Ministry of Defence says: “This strong snake can grow up to two metres long.

“It has small cat-like eyes and fangs at the front of the mouth. The viper’s venom can be toxic to humans and the victim should receive immediate first-aid and medical assistance.”

A local travel website describes the blunt-nosed viper as “the bad boy of the island’s snakes … the only potentially lethal snake in Cyprus”. It notes, however, that fatalities are extremely rare.

An average of about 40 people are hospitalised after being bitten by venomous snakes on Cyprus each year, according to a study in the Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology.

Between 2000 and 2018, there were just two deaths from snake bites, a man aged 73 and a woman aged 77.

More than 90 per cent of cases came during the warm months of April to October, with a spike in September.

“Snake bite-related deaths are very rare in the Republic of Cyprus,” the study said. “Short hospital stays indicate mostly non-severe clinical courses.”

The risk of being bitten by a venomous snake was highest around Paphos, the holiday resort in the west of the island that attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists, including many Britons.