As the weather warms up, the snakes will be coming out. Here’re the most venomous ones you need to watch out for, especially around the Sai Kung Country Parks area.
MANY BANDED KRAIT
This snake is extremely venomous; its neurotoxic venom causes severe respiratory failure and paralysis with a high mortality rate if you don’t get treatment within four to eight hours.. These reptiles are 3 to 5ft long, banded in black and white. They are nocturnal and like marshes and wetlands; occasionally they will be found in residential areas.
BANDED KRAIT
This krait is larger then the one above, nearly 7ft when adult. The skin has gold and black rings. Running with the Hash House Harriers through the bush at speed I have suddenly come across a banded krait and had to leap over it. These snakes are timid and docile; its venom is similar to the above snake, slightly weaker, however, but because of the snake’s large size it can deliver a lot of venom. They are active at night and more dangerous then. During the day they will lie in grass, pits or drains, lethargic and sluggish.
KING COBRA
This snake grows up to 18ft, the world’s longest venomous snake. They’re scary, but avoid humans and you will likely never see one — over 40 years with the Hash House Harriers I have never seen one. You can distinguish these snakes from the Chinese cobra by the light rings on their skin. With a life span of 20 years, the king cobra lives in thick forest near lakes or streams. This snake can kill a man with a single bite. Without antivenom, the mortality rate is 75%. It is snake handlers who are most likely to be bitten.
CHINESE COBRA
This is the snake you are most likely to find near your house, especially if it’s isolated in the bush. They may hang around your house feeding on rats, mice and other creatures. My wife was frightened by one lurking under our garden table. The Chinese cobra is known for its ability to raise its front body and flatten its neck, scarily. Highly venomous — the bite causes localised necrosis — the Chinese cobras you will see around Sai Kung are usually so dark grey they are almost black. They are up to six ft long and sometimes capable of spitting venom at you across six feet. Going down a stream bed with a companion on a Hash House Harriers run we saw a Chinese cobra 20ft in front of us. My friend threw a rock at it. The snake rose up and hissed. Frightened the snake might attack us I told my friend to leave it alone. The reptile slithered off into the bush.
BAMBOO SNAKE
This one causes the most bites in Hong Kong, because it is slow moving and won’t get out of your way. Also called the white-lipped viper, it is bright green with a triangular head and sometimes orange on the tail. Nocturnal, it may be found in trees and bushes or on fences. It’s the most common venomous snake in Hong Kong, but the venom is nowhere near as serious as that of the above snakes. You’ll get swelling and pain like tooth ache. Do get treatment.
There are about 300 cases of snake bite in Hong Kong annually, but no deaths for over 20 years because of wide availability of anti-venom.
All photos: Wikipedia
The last recorded fatality from a snake bite was in 1988 from an imported “pet”