What Snakes Are In My Area?

[Mr Ling Noi]

Hi All animal experts,

I live in Chanthaburi and just had a fire that came very close to my house (10-15 meters), It started from a rice paddock next to our estate, which i happen to be right on it, and after all settled down, I found some snakes hanging around, 2 of which were in my house and one on my front step. 1 i can identifiy as a small cobera but the other 2 i am not so sure of.

I beleive one was a ngu sam liam, Or in english a Banded Krait but i am not 100% sure as the colors were not as strong as i have seen in pictures, so if there is another snake similar to this then what is it or what could it be?

the other was a real mystery, it was similar to the Banded Krait, but had a very small, short, pointy head and short, thin body, and the best part was the colors, it was striped with a bright green and a kind of dark (although still pronounced) odd sort of color (sorry for the poor description i was just trying to get the thing out of my house).

If i can think or i find a similar snake/color i will post it, but i would like to know what kind of snakes will i find here and what is the potential dangers/aggressiveness of these snakes?

I have grown up with snakes from a farm in Aus and have no real fear of them but would like to know as much as i can about the snakes that are now (after the fire today) in my house!

Thanks for any help.

Cheers!!

[p_brownstone]

Have a look at:

http://www.siam-info.de/english/snakes_poisonous.html

Patrick

[Mr Ling Noi]

The Laotian Wolf Snake may be the snake i found instead of the banded krait, which would explain the not so pronounced color/bands.

I haven't come accross anymore since the other day which I am in no hurry to see them come back.

Thanks for the site Patrick, It has some good info.

Cheers

[Sheryl]

Besides cobras, the poisonous snakes common in your area include Russels viper, Malayan Pit Viper and Green Pit Viper. None of these are the ones you describe, buy you may come across them in future. They are weasy to recognize, check the photos in the website for the first 2. For the third, there can be some confusion because there are other bright green snakes in Thailand, but the thing about the Green Pit Viper is that it lives in trees and high places, you won't often see it on the ground. Any bright green snake that us in a tree or roof rafters or other high place should be assumed to be a Green Pit Viper.

These 3 are all poisonous but it is a hematological rather than neurotoxin (cobra is neurotoxin) which means that although you can lose a limb or die, it won't happen quickly and there will be ample time to get to a hospital. Cobras and kraits, on the other hand, require very prompt treatment.

The important things to know if bitten are:

1. Immobolize the area with a splint and apply ice immediately, keep ice on until you reach medical care.

2. Catch and kill the snake and bring it with you -- antivenoms are snake specific. After biting snales tend to be a bit lethargic and not travel far so this is not as difficult as it sounds. At the least, you need to have had a good look at the snake so that a tentative ID can be made, but bringing the culprit with you (dead) is by far the best way to ensure appropriate treatment.

3. Go to nearest Provincial Hospital. Don't bother with a Health Center, small private clinic, they won't have the antivenom. Likerwise district Hospitals may not although it may vary by location. Still, unless there is trouble breathing (in which case the nearest health facility of any kind), best to head for the provincial hospital, they will be best equipped to handle it.

P.S. Planting citrus will help reduce the number of snakes in your yard , see related post n this thread.