Bites by venomous snakes uncommon in area

Snakes have been in the spotlight again recently after a girl was bitten by a venomous species in Southeast Missouri.

Naturalist Jordi Brostoski of the Missouri Department of Conservation said, however, there are only about 100 snake bites reported in the state each year. Rarely are they fatal.

"People are bitten by venomous snakes on occasion, and it's usually because either they're harassing the snake, or it's an accident: They accidentally walk on it, or they accidentally put their hand on it. That's what we hear most of," Brostoski said.

Brostoski said the girl recently bitten stepped on a snake while barefoot.

"A lot of people, when they think about snakes, they often think that snakes are evil or coming after them," Brostoski said. "But they're just snakes doing what snakes do, which is trying to stay safe."

A venomous cottonmouth snake rest in an enclosure Wednesday at the Cape Girardeau Conservation Nature Center. (Glenn Landberg)

Missouri is home to 47 species of snakes, 88 percent of which are harmless, according to mdc.mo.gov.

Venomous snakes in Southeast Missouri are the copperhead, cottonmouth, western pygmy rattlesnake, massasauga rattlesnake and timber rattlesnake, according to the Missouri Department of Conservation website.

Brostoski said snakes generally are not aggressive.

"When we hear people talk about aggressive snakes or they say, 'Well, it struck at me,' that is the last defense mechanism of a snake's," Brostoski said. "Their first defense is to stay camouflaged, stay hidden, slither away if they can. If they can't, a lot of them even go through a series or stages of warnings."

She said snakes will hiss and rattle their tails regardless of whether they are a rattlesnake, or emit a strong odor. The hognose snake even will flip over and play dead, she said.

"... If they get close enough to you to bite you, that also means it's dangerous for them," she said.

If a person is bitten by a snake, Brostoski said they should get to a hospital.

"If you go to the hospital, your likelihood of surviving is well up there," she said. "It's really rare to die of a venomous snake bite in our state."

Brostoski said a lot of snake bite prevention is common sense.

"You see the snake, you leave it alone," she said. "You're out in a place where a snake might be, like if you're out camping in the woods, you zip up your tent."

One tip Brostoski had for hikers was if they come across a log on their hike, step on top of it before just stepping over it to check for a snake on the other side.

"A lot of it is just really thinking about where you are."

kwebster@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3646

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How to spot venomous snakes in Missouri

How to spot venomous snakes in Missouri

• All venomous snakes native to Missouri are members of the pit viper family. Pit vipers have a characteristic pit between the eye and nostril on each side of the head. They also have a pair of well-developed fangs.
• Note the shape of the pupil. The pupils of venomous snakes appear as vertical slits within the iris.
• Missouri*'s venomous species all have a single row of scales along the underside of the tail.
• Missouri*'s venomous snakes include the copperhead, cottonmouth, western pygmy rattlesnake, massasauga rattlesnake and timber rattlesnake. The western diamond-backed rattlesnake and coralsnake are not found in Missouri. The most common venomous snake in Missouri is the copperhead.

Source: mdc.mo.gov