Designing venom glands for an elephant: misting

Laugh all you like, you won't be laughing when it sprays you with its jade trunk of death.

Info

I figured out that I wanted an elephant that sprays poison (not acid) out of its trunk a while ago (Thank you, @James for that idea.)

Now, the poison is a misted poison sprayed through the trunk of the elephant. The venom glands that produce it are modified parotid glands that bulge like hamster-cheeks (parotid glands are usually venom or saliva glands located from below the ear running down the jaw/cheek). In this scenario, the glands are very swollen from storing plenty of poison, so imagine an elephant with small hamster-cheek protrusions from its jaw.

Let's say the elephant can produce 1/2 gallon of poison per gland per week.

The poison has to have some way to reach the trunk of the elephant.

The elephant is:

• immune to this poison
• a fully grown adult
• and has the diet needed to produce this amount of poison

The eyes of the elephant have a second inner eyelid to protect the eye when "misting."

Question

How would the venom run into the trunk, and how could the elephant spray it into a fine mist? I am looking for a structural component.

Thanks to all in the Sandbox for helping me with this question.

No handwavium answers/comments or unbuilding of the premise, please.

posted almost 6 years ago

FoxElemental‭

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