Snakes in Thailand

[leeboi999]

ahh its just a baby ill jam my thumb up its butthole!

On a serious note if a snake is on the property I will kill. I dont want to throw it over the road into the next persons house

[Adrianna]

as we are discussing about thailand snakes, and in Thailand has a large number of species of snakes – over 200 species of which more than 60 are venomous (have venom dangerous to humans). I noticed that many people are afraid to hike in Thailand because of their fear of snakes. I wrote this Thailand Snake FAQ to help dispel any rumors and clarify what exactly are the dangers you might encounter here on vacation or for a long-term stay.
Here are some quick snake facts. Any snake experts out there can question these facts and I’ll change the wording if necessary. I’m NOT a herpetologist, so please, if you are and can back up your facts – feel free to straighten me out anywhere here on this section of Thailand Snakes.
Thailand snakes are NOT interested in coming after you. You are not a target when you’re retreating. Only two of the snakes – the Burmese and Reticulated Pythons get large enough to eat you or your children. Recently I saw a Thailand python eat an adult goat (a kid) but, there hasn’t been a child eaten for as far as I can remember.
Thailand snakes don’t chase you. Thailand cobras – the king cobras can ‘chase’ you in short spurts – but, it’s only while they are defending themselves and are actively striking that they move forward toward you at all. The copperheaded racers (rat snake) and king cobras tend to move toward you as they strike. Sometimes Kings give a little follow up strike too. One of these nailed a wildlife presenter with National Geographic while in India.
You are NOT likely to see a venomous or non-venomous snake in Thailand during your vacation. Most visitors do not. I don’t have figures but, I’d guess less than 1% see any snake at all – including in the Thailand snake shows.
Snakes are active during the day and night. I’ve seen Golden Tree snakes, Monocled Cobras, King Cobras, Vipers, Copperheaded Racers, and all kinds of snakes during the daytime. Supposedly more snakes are active at night. Snakes are more active during April, May, June in Thailand and also during and after rain.
More snakes are active at sea-level than in the higher elevations, but snakes can regularly be found on mountains.

[hhfarang]

Adrianna,

I agree with your entire post. Snakes are more afraid of us than we are of them so the chances of a short term visitor encountering one or getting bitten by one are (I would guess) somewhere akin to the chances of getting struck by lightening.

The only exception that I keep reminding people about is the Malayan Pit Viper. While they are not aggressive and will not chase a person, they sit still and also will not flee; they will strike if you come within their uncomfortable circle of distance (a few feet). Having a big garden, that is the only snake I fear, because they are very still and camouflaged until you get too close. Other than that one (which is the most common venomous snake in south Asia, I don't worry about snakes at all.

[somtumtiger]

I know live and let live, but if they come near me and mine, I'm gonna introduce them to my shovel pdq.

[wpcoe]

Amazingly, I've pretty much overcome a life-long fear of snakes since I moved to Thailand.

I lived for six years in a somewhat remote area of Jomtien (seriously!) and would go for long walks (on the paved streets) and saw so many serpents that I did a lot of reading on the internet. I feel much more confident around snakes now, knowing that they are not "out to get me," unless I stupidly do something that they perceive as threatening.

As a true test of that new serpent perspective, I have now had 5 (or maybe 6? I might have lost track) golden tree snakes INSIDE my rented townhouse on Hua Hin Soi 80 in the seven months I've lived here. They are a pests, to be sure, but I'm not so scared of them. I think we (my landlord, the fire department and I) have finally found all their entrance/exit points as I have now gone several weeks without seeing one.

BTW, if you do get a snake in your house and have the fire department come to remove it, be ready to have your home trashed, unless you know exactly where the snake is. My last intruder tucked himself away in the TV cabinet behind some cassette tapes and we almost didn't find it. When the guys left, my place looked like the police had conducted a drug search -- a total mess!

The one snake I think I am still a bit afraid of is a king cobra, since they can slither when they are upright, can raise up to 1/3 of their length, and can be pretty long, hence pretty *tall.* Knowing that a cobra in attack mode cannot slither while upright, gives me the calmness to back away from it. (I've only seen one cobra, and yes it went upright, and yes, it calmed down when I backed away.)

Well, make that two snakes I have reservations about. Probably the pit vipers, too. (Da*n you, HHF! )

[Big Boy]

BTW, if you do get a snake in your house and have the fire department come to remove it, be ready to have your home trashed, unless you know exactly where the snake is.

I'm not having a go here wpcoe, but are you serious - call the fire department to remove a snake from the house? Is this a normal service - sorry if I'm being thick, but personally I wouldn't have thought of calling the fire department to remove a snake.

[wpcoe]

Actually, the owner of my townhouse, who works at the tessabahn, called them. It has been the same group of guys each time, so I think they are the "Snake Busters" team. They had the appropriate snake catching tools and white cloth bag.

I assumed it was a Thai municipal service like in America where the fire department rescues cats from trees. Initially, I was irritated when she called them, as I only notified her AFTER the snakes had LEFT my house. I wanted to see how/where they were getting in/out and only wanted assistance in sealing up those areas, and was quite annoyed the first few times the fire department showed up! However, the firemen actually did most of the repair work on the back of the building, and when we decided to remove an exhaust fan (through which one snake departed) and replace it with glass, a fireman did that, too. I only paid for the glass. Also, the firemen cut the weeds in the vacant lot behind my home and said they would return later to spray with weed killer. Now, maybe she's a high enough official at the tessabahn that they did this for her as a favor? Or, maybe it's a traditional Hua Hin Fire Department duty? <shrug>

JOOC, who would you have called to remove a snake? I know in Pattaya, the Sawang Boriboom (sp?) has a team of snake catchers. Had the snakes not left on their own ambition, I probably would have encouraged them to leave by using a broom and hoping for the best. I had positively identified these critters as golden tree snakes, so wasn't too scared of them. Had it been a cobra, I'm not sure what I would have done...

[hhfarang]

Snakes hell! Yesterday we had a dinosaur in our garden. It really is a jungle out there! My wife was sitting on the porch and saw movement at the back of the yard and called me. It was a 1 meter+ monitor lizard with a circumference as big as my thigh in the middle! She ran to get a camera and I ran to do a quick internet search to find out how dangerous they are and by the time either of us got down there it was in a hedgerow with only it's head sticking out. I went to get something to try to catch it with (a rope noose to remove it before it ate our koi or got into a fight with our dogs) and when I got back it had gone into hiding. We looked for an hour and couldn't find it. I don't know how something that big can disappear so quickly but I hope it doesn't come back.

[pharvey]

Christ HHF - where do you live???!!

[hhfarang]

Smack in the middle of several large farang owned developments in the hills above Takiab. In my net search I found that these reptiles are all over Bangkok too and grow up to two meters long. They are protected but Thais like to eat them on the sly.