Snake Sense

Is that snake dangerous or not?

One of the first articles I wrote for SA4x4 was how to treat snakebite. Because I spend so much of my time in the bush, I thought it might be worth sharing my knowledge of how to avoid (or at least lessen) the risk of getting bitten.

The good news first, though. Of the 3000 known snake species, only about 250 species are considered to be of medical importance. Unless you are in Australia, which has a higher percentage of venomous snakes than non-venomous snakes, most snakes that you stumble across are likely to be harmless.

Detecting humans

Snakes pick up ground vibrations through their jaw muscles, detecting your presence from the noise you make when walking.

A snake will therefore move off long before you encounter it. However, there are exceptions to this rule. Many snakes such as Puff Adders (Bitis arietans) lie in ambush, waiting for their prey to chance by. These are the snakes which you are more likely to encounter.

Stand still A snake will not bite unless it is provoked into defending itself: it would rather avoid confrontation. The trigger mechanism for a bite is your movement. If you remain motionless, a snake will not bite you. But if you begin waving your arms around, or kick out in the vain hope of chasing it off, that makes you a threat.

Irrespective of the type of snake, remaining still is the best thing you can do.

Don’t try and kill it

One of the worst things you can do is try to kill the snake. The old belief that “The only good snake is a dead snake” is a hard one to change.

How can you get bitten trying to kill a snake? Most people are inclined to pick up the nearest stick and try to bash its brains out, but as you hit it, often the head end flicks upwards or backwards, and ‘bites’ you. Not good if it is a venomous species.