Gopher snake taking a drink before being located from a barn to nearby canyon. Photo by stable owner

Garter snake in bird bath. Courtesy photo

BY JAN MACEK
Los Alamos

World Snake Day celebrated every July 16 was created to help people learn about snakes and understand their role in our environment in hopes that people will help protect instead of destroy.

Snakes tend to have a negative connotation and is linked to humans with less than desirable traits. Most of us have heard “snake in the grass”, “…speaks with a forked tongue”, etc. It is this attitude in our language, in our folklore, in myths, in stories including the Bible, in songs, in movies that have helped to promote such a negative stereotype and image of snakes and have contributed to much of the fear and hatred.

Did you know the Kaa, a gigantic python, in the original Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling is depicted as a heroic character, and a protector and mentor of Mowgli rather than a man-eater.  He protects and guides Mowgli, often rescuing him from his enemies but in the Disney version of The Jungle Book he became Kaa, the sly, sneaky menacing threat.

Walt Disney didn’t think that audiences would accept or believe a snake could be a hero, and so he changed him to a comedic villain.

Walt Disney was wrong; snakes are heroes since they play a vital role in the environment and the ecosystem and help to save human lives. Snakes in the ecosystem equal a healthy environment for all creatures including humans. Please know that most snakes are harmless to humans and even venomous snakes are your allies. They help to keep down the rodent population which in turn will protect humans from the Plague and the Hantavirus and ticks that carry Lyme disease. Snake venoms are serving as templates for some of the top medicines used in high blood pressure, heart failure, pain relief and heart attack. Treatments for other neurological conditions are in the works and further drugs are also in development for stoke and cardiovascular disease as well as conditions such as prostate cancer, breast cancer, HIV and multiple sclerosis. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6832721/

Snakes are declining all over the world and because they are both predator and food for other creatures, snakes are essential players in nature’s ecosystem and the conservation of them is vital. Habitat loss, climate change, fungal disease in snakes (SFD), attitudes of humans, rattlesnake roundups, the use of chemicals and other harmful elements, roads which equal cars-DOR (dead on road) plus dogs and especially outside domestic cats are taking a toll on our snake population. There is much we can do to help snakes by not using chemicals, (some snakes eat insects) or poisons which gets in the food chain, bird netting or glue traps (both trap and can kill if not found quickly), by providing a safe haven in your yard for the nonvenomous, by educating residents and by keeping your pets under control. 

Here in Los Alamos one can call the police dispatcher 505-662-8222 who along with animal control (when on duty will take snake calls) have a list of those who will relocate. 

Please appreciate the snakes we do have and respect that we share this earth with them. No one has said that you have to like snakes but you do not have to harm them. One can always use a stream of water from a hose (please run the water first if water is hot from sitting in the sun before aiming it at the snake) to direct the snake from where it is not wanted or use the non emergency number for the police dispatcher to have snake relocated. There is just no excuse to harm snakes when there are many humans who will take the time to relocate. So many in New Mexico, in the United States and all over the world are doing what they can to help snakes. We can take pride that Los Alamos is one of many towns that is on this list.

Please celebrate the beauty, grace and diversity of snakes and respect the amazing abilities of these wonderful creatures who are so underrated for all the good they do. Snakes have been here for millions of years but their continued existence depends on us humans. Please do not let other’s hatred and misinformation and fear mongering destroy a creature that has just as much right as we do to exist on this Earth.  Thank you.