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Nurse Ratched
1:30 Mon Jul 22
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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VEN
OM
OUS.
For the love of god!
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Leonard Hatred
1:25 Mon Jul 22
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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FEH
Fuck you on about?
There are MILLIONS of poisonous snakes in AZ.
RATTLESNAKES and that.
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Far East Hammer
1:14 Mon Jul 22
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Firstly, to the best of my knowledge THERE ARE NO POISONOUS SNAKES IN ARIZONA (NONE WHATSOEVER) - a few species of keelbacks are poisonous. For example, in Hong Kong we have the beautiful red-necked keelback, which can secrete poison from its red neck as a defence against predators (birds & other snakes mainly). The red necked keelback is also venomous, but rear-fanged so envenomations are fairly rare, especially life-threatening envenomations.
Anyway, I've encountered a fair few snakes in the wild:
Adder in Italy
Mangrove snake (mildly venomous), Coral snake, (highly venomous) "bootlace snake" (I was told quite venomous) and another (dunno what) in Malaysia
Water snake in Vietnam and a cobra (Chinese cobra I presume, but didn't get long enough to properly clock it)
Rat snake (harmless) in Sri Lanka
Closest encounter was with a banded sea krait which swam around my ankle, rubbing itself against my ankle a bit like a cat does - that was in Cebu, Philippines
One in South Africa (not sure what)
And in Hong Kong:
2 x king cobra (obviously highly venomous)
3 x Chinese cobra (highly venomous)
1 x mock viper (mildly venomous)
2 x rat snakes (harmless, but feisty)
1 x red necked keelback (both venomous AND poisonous)
1 x bamboo pit viper
I'd be lying if I said they never startled me. And I almost shat myself when I had my first encounter (the adder in Italy when I was 12 or 13) Took me until my 7th or 8th sighting I guess to be more relaxed about them (though can still be startled initially, e.g. when walking along, one sees you before you see it, then it suddenly springs into life even if it is slithering away)
However, more often than not the things dart out of your way before you have a chance to properly see them. Actually, more often than sightings whilst out walking in Hong Kong, are when you can hear them in the undergrowth very near. Sometimes they might or might not be snakes, other times you can be at least 90% sure that's what's in there. Those "hear but can't see" encounters are what freak me out more to be honest.
Most snakes are more scared of you than you are of them and unless you've inadvertently (or deliberately) cornered one, they'll do their best to get the fuck out of your way. Bamboo pit viper is an exception - it'll just sit there but if you put your foot a bit too close it might decide to strike (which is why they're responsible for the most bites in Hong Kong).
Also, in the case of cobras and possibly other snakes which can envenomate, they don't always envenomate. Dry bites can occur.
All that having been said, I don't know whether you get fer de lance snakes in Arizona. They are mental fuckers. One of relatively few snakes that will sometimes decide to go out of their way to tag you (as opposed to slithering off in the opposite direction). I know in Florida and Central America it's basically fer de lance snakes that are feared for this very reason.
Mind you, during the school year before last, TWO classmates of my daughter got themselves tagged in the space of about 3 months. One was unfortunate (bamboo pit viper by the side of the path). The other one, to use Far East Hammerette's own recounting "got what the stupid bitch deserved; she was drunk and decided it'd be funny to crash through some undergrowth" - at which point the girl in question got bitten by a krait (not sure whether a Banded Krait or a Many Banded Krait - one of which is usually completely docile (unless you step/ fall on it), the other can be a bit less docile, but both of which require more vials of antivenine than a cobra bite). In both cases they had a stay in hospital (1 week and 10 days respectively).
Just make sure - as you'll be in the States - that your medical insurance covers snake bites, as antivenine can be fucking expensive (fortunately in HK, we get it through the public health system when needed)
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Eggbert Nobacon
12:12 Mon Jul 22
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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https://doveruk.s3.amazonaws.com/user-files/17795-adder.jpg
https://doveruk.s3.amazonaws.com/user-files/31910-adder-sleeping-sh.jpg
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Eggbert Nobacon
12:09 Mon Jul 22
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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lowermarshhammer 1:53 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes
get down to Samphire Hoe
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Tomshardware
11:57 Mon Jul 22
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Snakes are more feared than other things because they are quick across the ground, good swimmers and good climbers.
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Eggbert Nobacon
11:22 Mon Jul 22
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Gavros 12:12 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
I saw an adder in kent the other week. It moved like a sidewinder. Was only a small thing
quite afew places down here hae them, see loads at Samphire Hoe, dogs get bit in Rainham and Faversham near me quie often, some bloke got bit by one in Rainham the other year but he was picking it up
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Westham67
5:14 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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I have heard quite a lot about PNG a very dangerous place all round still tribal
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Cheezey Bell-End
5:12 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Hardly anyone in Australia dies from snake bites. Single figures most years. Eastern browns make up the majority of fatalities and could have been what Fraser encountered. They will escape if they can.
In the tropics there are taipans which are slightly less venomous but more highly strung. A year or 2 ago, some guy near Cairns found one in his house and tried to pick it up with kitchen tongs instead of calling an expert. Died in hospital the next day.
On the other hand... Papua New Guinea has some of the same snakes, most notably a subspecies of taipan, and there there is carnage. I don't know how accurate it is, but I heard that fatal snake bites, 80% of which are from the Papuan taipan, outnumber heart attacks and cancer in PNG, and the other WHO are finally starting to see snake bites as a health crisis worthy of their attention rather than focusing on diseases.
I never actually saw a snake in Australia while living there, but knew they were around. In London, I'm still slightly hesitant about walking in long grass as a result.
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13 Brentford Rd
10:46 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Great film...
"We are the mods we are the mods we are we are we are the mods"
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simon.s
10:30 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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My main fear of snakes when I’ve been to places where they live, is treading on the fuckers, especially as I always do a bit of running when I’m away. Then they would strike out.
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fraser
10:06 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Every snake in Oz is bad fucking news.
Had a, baby one in my garage when first there, removed it with a stick thinking how deadly could it be as was tiny.
I was reliably informed after it was very deadly.
Also came within feet of quite a few tiger snakes on the golf course.
My ten year old hurdled one on the path as he ran along not looking till I shouted snake, soon looked mind.
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plankton
9:26 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Lived in Florida for four years a while ago. Bought a book about Florida snakes, and learnt which six species out of the 96 endemic ones were the ones that were bad news. Drummed which species they were into the kids and missus, and we enjoyed our encounters with the rest of them.
Had some decent rattlesnakes in the yard (one six-footer we killed with a shovel as it took up residence under the barn and the dogs would have been bitten at some stage), fished two coral snakes out of the pool and simply relocated them, and met a few cottonmouths down by the pond who we simply stepped a long way round. Never saw a pygmy rattler - by all accounts they cause more problems than most, although the cottonmouth simply will not move off the path, relying on camouflage to survive. A cottonmouth bite is not fun, but not sure you will get any in Arizona.
Knowledge is king - know thy enemy (as some army general said). Be better prepared for angry yanks with guns rather than snakes. Watch out for angry creationists, too.
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ray winstone
8:32 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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I was in Sequoia last year and came across a strange looking slippery fucker, my initial reaction was to try and get a decent photo of it while my mate who is 6’6” was screaming like a girl behind a tree.
In hindsight, I should have joined him but I did manage to get the snap...
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Ronald_antly
7:59 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Leonard Hatred wrote...
"It's not necessarily the DEATH part I'm scared of.
They just give me the willies. "
'Trouser snakes' give me the willies.
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normannomates
4:27 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Can I come along?
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arsegrapes
3:42 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Stayed with relatives in Spain rural finca up in the hills in a valley. No services of electric,gas,water,sewage,telephone. Satellite tv unable to get signal. A dried up well. No Mobile phone then in Spain. They used to shoot the rats size of cats with an air rifle.
Was on my own with the mrs sunbathing when she said something had bitten her, she started vomiting and shitting simultaneously then collapsed. I picked her up and could only see the whites of her eyes so I slapped her and threw water over her face and she came back, took her a few hours to recover, thought I’d lost her. No vehicle or phone, nearest hospital 45 minutes drive. She had an an anaglyptic shock reaction to scorpion bite.
A couple of weeks later same finca I strolled out into the garden at night when a large black Montpellier Snake slivered right across the path in front of me within half a metre. I stopped froze in my tracks. There were plants to the left and right of the path and it seemed to take an eternity to pass across, must have been 6ft long no bullshit. I never ventured outside after that, no one believed me, the owners said they lived there 10 years and never seen one. Although they said they would shake their underwear, clothes, shoes and small white scorpions would fall out sometimes!
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Johnson
2:06 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Knowing the way Gavvy exaggerates what he’s seen an done it was probably a common garden worm.
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gph
2:01 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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I'm pretty city, too.
I've only once had to shit in the woods, and the country girl I was with thought that my trauma at doing this was comical.
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lowermarshhammer
1:53 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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Well done Gav, was it deffo an adder? Honestly Not taking the piss here out of your city boy nature skills but if it was small maybe a grass snake or even a slow worm?
I would love to see an adder, I have only seen two shedded adder skins, that must have been in the late 70's as a kid.
Of course the adder's alternative name is the Viper.
There is only one pub in England with that name, it's a lovely country pub in the woods around Fryerning.
Heard a story that in WW2 the landlord would get important letters to pass on from POW's that were addressed simply as:-
The Viper
England
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gph
1:51 Sat Jul 20
Re: Ophidiophobia (fear of snakes)
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*in the wild* Seen them in zoos, naturally
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