There’s been a recent flurry of snake sightings signalling the end of their winter brumation – which brings them forward in our mind to “Snakes on our brain”.
On a combined mission for a meal and a mate, they’re a bit more visible now than at other times of the year. Wherever you sit on the snake love/hate spectrum, you can’t deny that these are amazing animals, and if they’re in your area, also a sign of a balanced ecosystem. To persist in an environment, snakes need an abundance of their prey (usually rodents, frogs, lizards, eggs or nestlings), as well as all the species their prey feed upon. They need habitat to shelter from excessive heat and cold, a varied landscape. Like Goldilocks, snakes want the temperature to be just right. Life can be tough as a snake. Apart from being targeted by those on a mission to rid the planet of snakes, they can also become food for birds of prey, native marsupials, feral cats and foxes, or other snakes. Climate change is predicted to cause an overall population decline as they transition to a more nocturnal lifestyle.
For those that possess it, venom is a last resort and only a minority of species can deliver a life-threatening bite to a person. But snakes would much rather use their venom to subdue prey (that’s what they have it for) than to defend themselves. Making themselves invisible is their superpower. Confrontation is not their thing and they’re far happier disappearing to avoid a fight with a predator or person. They can swim, glide from trees, or climb smooth surfaces. If you see a snake, give it plenty of space and it will do the same for you.
Don’t run your garden into a serpents den, think of things that attract them. Chook pens, aviaries, rock piles, logs and frog ponds either provide a food source or habitat that snakes love. Keep dogs on the lead in snakey areas and educate your kids to be snake-smart from as young as possible. Learn snake bit first aid and always have a few compression bandages in your hiking pack or car. You’ll hopefully never use them, but a life saver if needed.
At Wildside Sanctuary, the safety of our guests is our highest priority – You don’t need to fear snake bites on bushwalks in Australia.
While we are surrounded by nature, that does not mean we need to feel threatened by it. A common sense approach with some clear ground rules will allow you to enjoy your stay with us and stay safe.
Aware of snakes – yes,
Cautious of snakes – yes,
Afraid – hell no!
There is an incredible misnomer that Australian snakes are really dangerous – by Inspiration Outdoors.
It is true, we have the dubious honour of having the two most venomous snakes in the World, the Eastern Brown (pictured) and the Inland Taipan, as well as a whole host of the top 20 most venomous snakes. A full bite from the Inland Taipan has enough toxicity to kill 100 adult men. A stupid amount of poison for one snake to have!
Yes, our snakes are incredibly venomous, but let’s not confuse venomous with dangerous. Most Australian snakes, with a few notable exceptions, are not dangerous at all.
Australia is teeming with snakes. There are so many snakes in Australia, that if our snakes were actually aggressive, then we would have fatalities every day. The truth is our snakes are very shy, and bites are generally defensive.
Let’s check out the statistics to prove the point.
Firstly, if you are going to worry about being bitten by snakes, worry when you are in India, not Australia. 46,000 people die every year in India from snake bites. That is 4 people for every 100,000! This is mainly down to their very aggressive Cobras.
Yet Australia on average has 2 fatalities each year which is just 0.007 out of every 100,000 people. We have approximately 550 people attend hospital due to snake bite in Australia, resulting in just 2 fatalities.
2 out of 550 is a mortality rate of 0.36%. That is to say that each year 0.36% of people bitten by a snake, die from the snake bite. So the chances of being bitten in the first place are really small, and then the chance of dying is infinitesimal.
When a fatality occurs, it is a great shock (and it sells a lot of newspapers!), but let’s put those numbers in context for a minute.
- 1,200 people died in 2017 from road accidents, yet we still drive cars.
- Every year over 100,000 people are attacked by dogs, with over 13,000 hospitalisations, yet we still have dogs, and what’s more, we allow them in our homes. (fatalities statistics caused by dogs are blurry, but it looks like around 2-3 per year).
- 7-8 people die per year from either falling from, or being kicked by horses, yet we are a nation of horse lovers.
- More people in Australia were killed by cows in the last 10 years, than by snakes, and that is not including those who died in traffic accidents caused by cows.
And it is not hikers that are die from snakes. Of the snake bites that do occur in Australia, 54% of snake bite fatalities in the last 20 years have occurred in people’s homes, not out in the bush.
Why our snakes won’t kill you when hiking;
Firstly, you are not going to pick one up! Overwhelmingly the people who die from snake bites are middle aged men, who are either doing something stupid or they are working in remote areas, and they are just incredibly unlucky.
Secondly, as the statistics above demonstrate, only 0.36% of people bitten die. The reason is, most bites from Australian snakes are “dry” as no venom is injected. In fact from the 550 people who report to hospital each year due to snake bite, only about 40 are treated with anti-venom because the bites are dry.
Thirdly, our snakes generally have very small teeth that are way up in the back of their jaws. They evolved to kill mice and small mammals, not humans. For an Australian snake to kill you, they need to get a really good purchase on you, which is pretty hard to do, unless you are either unlucky, or doing something you shouldn’t.
Alert, cautious but not alarmed Don’t get me wrong. If you are out hiking in Australia, you need to be wary of snakes. But the statistics prove that being fearful of them is irrational.
With a few very simple precautions, the chances of being bitten are practically zero.
Precaution One: October to January is snake bite season. Be extra cautious in these months by wearing light weight long pants. With teeth less than 4mm long, most Australian snakes couldn’t penetrate a sock let alone a gaiter.
Precaution Two: Stay on hiking paths and never try to pick up a snake that is on the path. If you see a snake, make lots of noise and tap the ground. In all my years of hiking, I’ve never had a snake on the path that wouldn’t move. In fact most of the time, the snake is long gone before we even get close.
Written by Inspiration Outdoors – A walking tours company based in Fremantle WA
